Pokemon: A New Adventure Unfolds
by Freelancer 1989
Summary: Alex is a young boy from Solaceon Town, who's still troubled by the loss of some one dear to him. But a trip to visit family in Hoenn leads to a fateful encounter that will change his life... This is his journey through the Pokemon World *Update* Chapter 9 (Sorry this one took so long . )
1. Chapter 1

Pokémon: A New Adventure Unfolds

Summary: Alex is a young boy from Solaceon Town, who is still troubled by the loss of someone dear to him. But a trip to visit family in Hoenn leads to a fateful encounter that will change his life. This is his journey through the pokemon world.

Chapter 1: A boy and a lost pokemon

Summary: This is my first story so please review, comment, and rate. Tell me what I can improve on and what I need to fix or change.

This first chapter takes place when Alex is 6 years old. I hope you enjoy reading this

Alex and his family were traveling from their home in Sinnoh to visit relatives in Hoenn. As they pulled up to the house, Scott and Kristine got out of the car to let their kids Alex, Emily, and Andrew out. They had been driving for a few hours after their boat ride from Sinnoh and the kids were anxious to get out of the car. As they all walked up to the door, it opened and out came their Uncle Matt, Kristine's brother, and Aunt Amanda. The kids jumped and practically tackled their uncle and aunt; they hadn't seen them in a long time. Scott and Kris made their way up to greet them.

"Hey guys, good to see ya'll again" Matt said with a smile.

"We missed you guys" Amanda added.

"Well we all missed you too, now could you give us a hand with these bags?" Scott and Kris said practically in unison.

They laughed. "Alright alright, we're coming" Matt said as he put his nephews down.

"Why don't you kids go play outback, while your parents and us unpack the car" Amanda said as she put her niece down.

The kids ran to the backyard and found Tony, Amanda's Arcanine, and Coco, her Delcatty, playing. The kids ran over to join them. Andrew played with Tony while Emily spent time with Coco. Alex decided to sit on the swing that hung from a large tree in the backyard.

"It's good to see you all again" Matt said as they placed the luggage inside.

"So how have things been for you guys?" Scott asked as he sat down on the sofa.

"Same old, same old" Matt replied as he sat in his favorite chair.

"And how are things with you guys?" Amanda asked as she took a seat.

"We're doing fine" Kris answered as she sat on the sofa next to her husband.

"How are the kids doing?" Matt asked.

"Oh the usual, driving us crazy" Kris replied, Scott and Amanda laughed.

"How's Alex doing?" Matt said as he opened a bottle of beer.

A silence fell across the room as Scott and Kris looked at one another, trying to think of what to say.

"It's been almost a month since that day… is he doing alright?" Amanda broke the silence.

"I don't know, lately he has been kind of distant and quite" Scott said as he lowered his head.

"We sometimes hear him crying in the middle of the night" Kris said with concern in her eyes.

"It's been almost a month since Diana died saving him from that Seviper" Matt said as he finished taking a drink

"Those two were really close weren't they?" Amanda said as she looked out the window.

"Yeah, he looked up to her like an older sister" Scott said

"Ever since that day, he hasn't smiled once and he got scared stiff when we saw a trainer's Seviper battling another trainer's Donphan on the way down here" Kris said as she turned towards the window

"I see, guess seeing a Seviper brings back the memories of what happened to Diana" Matt said as he placed his drink on a small table

"What are we gonna do?" Kris said as she looked at her son on the swing with a sad look on his face.

"I think I know what might cheer him up, you just leave it to me" Matt said as he got to his feet.

"What do you have in mind?" Scott said as they all looked at Matt.

"I know this terrain like the back of my hand, and there is a special spot in the forest that I think he would really enjoy." Matt said with a smile, "It's a beautiful spot to relax in. It's also a great spot for fishing and swimming."

"That sounds like a good idea Matt" Amanda commented, "But why don't you take Ace and Ginger with you just in case" she added as she pointed at two pokeballs.

"Alright, but be careful" Kris said.

"Hey don't worry, he'll be with me after all" Matt replied.

"I know, that's why I'm worried" she responded.

Scott and Amanda couldn't help but laugh. As they got up, Matt made his way to the door and asked Alex to come inside for a little bit. He got off his swing and walked over to the house while Andrew and Emily continued to play with Tony and Coco.

"Hey buddy, come with me there is something I want to show you" Matt said as he put his hand on his nephew's head.

"Ok, Uncle Matt" Alex said as he followed.

"We'll be back soon" Matt said as they made their way into the woods.

As they walked along an old dirt path, Matt looked at Alex and saw a depressed look on his face.

"So what's wrong Alex, you feeling ok?" he asked

"I'm ok I guess" he replied without as much as an upward glance.

"Don't worry, you're really going to be excited when you see what I have in store for you" Matt said as they continued down the path.

As they continued to walk along the path, they started to see some pokemon going about their business. There was a Beautifly floating by some flowers. A pair of Zigzagoon playing in the grass. A Tailow and a Swellow perched on a branch cleaning their feathers. And some Seedot hanging from a tree. Further along the path a few Spinarak up in a tree while an Aipom hung from its tail right above them. Matt decided to stop by a tree to take a short break. He pulled out two bottles of water and handed one to Alex. As Matt opened his and took a drink Alex just held his and looked at the ground.

"Hang on a sec little buddy, I gotta take a leak" Matt said as he ran off into the bushes.

Alex continued to sit there as his mind started to wander. Memories of Diana started to fill his mind; he pulled his legs up and buried his head into his knees as tears began to roll down his face. Suddenly, he thought he heard a voice in his head. He pulled his head out of his knees and looked around. He didn't see anything and thought he had just imagined it.

"_help_…" a voice said weakly

He wasn't imagining things, someone was calling for help. Alex got to his feet, dried his tears, and started running to find out whose voice he was hearing. He eventually found a small clearing by a lake, there he found a Ralts lying in the grass. Alex could tell it was hurt badly as he approached the injured pokemon

"Are you ok?" he asked

But the Ralts just looked up at him and didn't say anything. Alex then remembered what he was told to do when you find a hurt pokemon… Take it to Nurse Joy.

As he got to his feet with the Ralts in his arms he heard something in the bushes, a Poochyena appeared and looked at them with a smirk on its face. It started to make its way towards them, growling as it got closer. Alex backed up nervously, not taking his eyes off the Bite pokemon in front of him. As it readied to jump, Alex tripped over a rock and fell backwards, dropping Ralts. The Poochyena quickly ran over to the injured psychic pokemon ready to make a meal out of it, but just as it was getting ready to bite, Alex picked up the rock he had tripped over and threw it, hitting the Poochyena right on the side of the head. It yelped and backed off as he picked up a stick and yelled at the Poochyena

"Leave it alone!" Ralts looked up to see Alex standing between her and the Poochyena.

The Bite pokemon looked at Alex and bared its teeth at him, it was pissed off now. It charged at him and jumped at him with its mouth opened ready to bite him. Alex managed to bring the stick up and get it caught in its mouth but the Poochyena bit it in half and bit him on the arm. Alex yelled in pain as it sank it's teeth into his left arm, he swung what was left of the stick he had and hit it a few times to get it off of him but it wouldn't let go. Alex quickly picked up the rock he had thrown and hit the Poochyena in the head as hard as he could, nailing it in almost the same spot he hit before. This time it let go and ran off with its tail between its legs and a trail of blood running down its face. Alex got back on his feet, walked over to Ralts, and picked her back up…

"Don't worry, I'm not going to let anything bad happen to you", he said before making his way out of the forest.

Ralts looked up at him, she was still very scared and didn't know if she could trust this human… but for some reason, she felt safe in his arms. Alex ran as fast as he could since he didn't want that Poochyena or any other wild pokemon to come and attack them. Soon enough he could see the road just up ahead. As they made it to the road, he could see the town

"We're almost there" he said as he took a moment or two to catch his breath.

But before he took another step he heard a loud and angry bark from behind him, Alex turned around and saw a Mightyena with a Poochyena with blood running down the side of its face. He then realized it was the same one from before and it looked like it brought its mother. The Mightyena glared at him angrily, baring her teeth, and growling furiously. Ralts was scared and held onto Alex's shirt tightly, he could tell she was scared and so was he… already exhausted from the fight earlier and the running he had done since then and with no pokemon of his own, he knew there was no way he could handle a Mightyena.

Alex was really trying to think of a way out but he was too scared to even think straight… he just held Ralts and tried to back away slowly. But as he did, the mother Mightyena opened her mouth and fired a Dark Pulse at him. The attack missed its target but the explosion caused a shard from a rock to fly up and give him a small cut across his right cheek. The Mightyena fired another Dark Pulse; Alex managed to dodge the attack but tripped and fell on his side. The Mightyena gave him a death look and started to charge at him, baring her teeth, prepared to bite this small human's head off. Alex tried to cover Ralts as best he could as the furious mother got closer and closer to them.

"I'm sorry, I tried my best to help you…" he said as a tear slid down his face.

The Mightyena leapt towards them…

"Ace, Mach Punch NOW!"

Alex looked up to see Ace, his uncle's Infernape, appear out of nowhere and punch the angry Mightyena right in the face. She flew back a few feet before getting up and growling at the Blaze pokemon. Alex couldn't believe his eyes.

"You alright, Alex?" a familiar voice asked

"Uncle Matt!" he said as he turned around and saw his uncle standing behind him.

"Take my eyes off of you for five minutes and look what happens… what have you been up to this whole time?" Matt said as he stared at pokemon in front of him

"I gotta get to the Pokemon Center" Alex replied while trying to catch his breath.

Matt looked down at him and saw the injured pokemon in his nephew's arms. The Mightyena let out a loud howl and a second Mightyena appeared, only this one was bigger than she was.

"I guess here comes daddy" Matt said to himself as he took out a pokeball, "You can fill me in on the details later just get to the pokemon center, take Ginger with you" Matt said as a Lopunny appeared from the ball's light

"Ginger, go with Alex and make sure those two get to Nurse Joy. Ace and I will handle things here" Matt said as he turned to face the Mightyena.

Ginger nodded as they ran down the road towards the Pokémon Center; the Mightyena saw this and grew very angry. The father opened his mouth and fired a Shadow Ball.

"Use Flamethrower" Matt commanded.

The Infernape opened his mouth and fired a powerful Flamethrower to counter the Shadow Ball. The two attacks collided and exploded violently as the father Mightyena charged at them ready to use Crunch.

"Ace, Mach Punch"

Ace's fist began to glow as he ran with incredible speed at his opponent. But just before they connected, the mother ran after and fired another Dark Pulse at Alex.

"Look Out!" Matt yelled.

Alex turned and saw the attack coming right at them but before he could react, with what little strength she had left, Ralts jumped in front of him and used Protect to shield them from the attack. Alex looked at Ralts, and as she finished her move he caught her in his arms, she looked up at him, smiled and put her hand on his cheek. As the mother Mightyena readied to fire another Dark Pulse…

"Ginger, Sky Uppercut!" Matt yelled, Ginger quickly moved to attack and the mother was sent flying back a few feet as Ginger punched her in the face.

"What are you waiting for? Get going now!" Matt yelled at his nephew

Alex got to his feet and made a run for the town. As the mother Mightyena got to its feet Ginger used Bounce and landed right on its back, forcing it back to the ground.

"If you want them, you're going to have to go through me first" Ginger said as she jumped off.

The father glared at Ace, the Infernape smirked at his opponent,

"Come on, unless you're afraid" he said as he dropped into a fighting stance.

The Mightyena charged at him his tail glowing brightly; it jumped and readied to hit Ace with an Iron Tail.

"Ace, dodge and use Blaze Kick"

As the Mightyena brought its tail down, Ace jumped into the air his foot ablaze as he kicked the Mightyena in the face, sending it into a tree trunk. It let out a cry of pain as it hit the tree and fell to the ground.

Meanwhile, as Alex ran towards the town he saw something approaching in the distance, it was an Officer Jenny on her motorcycle.

"Hey, Officer Jenny" he yelled and waved one of his arms trying to get her attention.

As Jenny got closer, she saw the little boy and stopped right in front of him.

"Are you alright kid?" she asked.

"I need to get to the Pokémon Center right away, it's an emergency" he said in a frantic voice, as she looked at him, Jenny noticed the injured Ralts in his arms

"Alright kid climb in and hang on tight" she said as motioned him to climb into the side car on her motorcycle. Jenny noticed a rather concerned look on the boy's face as he looked at the pokemon

"Don't worry, we'll be at the Pokémon Center in no time" Jenny said as she revved the engine and sped back to town, Alex couldn't help but yell "whoa" as he held onto Ralts tightly.

As they sped through the town Jenny quickly spotted the Pokémon Center. As Jenny drove up to it, a couple trainers were coming out of the Center; Jenny seized the opportunity, sped up and zoomed right through the open doors, the two trainers dove out of the way. She hit the brakes and they stopped right in front of the front desk.

"We do have a parking lot you know" Nurse Joy said in a rather annoyed voice, this wasn't the first time this particular Jenny had done this

"No time for that, we got an emergency on our hands" Jenny replied.

"Please Nurse Joy, you gotta help us" Alex said as he got out of Jenny's side car and showed Ralts to her.

"Oh my goodness, Chansey bring me a stretcher quickly" Nurse Joy said urgently.

A pair of Chansey appeared with a stretcher as Joy took Ralts from Alex and gently placed her on the stretcher. They quickly made their way into the emergency room as Alex looked on with a look of worry and concern on his face. Jenny placed her hand on his shoulder.

"Don't you worry now, your friend is in good hands" Jenny tried to reassure him.

"I'll be right back ok" Jenny walked off as Alex took a seat, after a few minutes, she returned with a first aid kit, "Let me see your arm"

"Huh, how come?" Alex asked with a confused look on his face.

"We better get that cleaned and bandaged up before it gets infected"

Alex looked at his arm; he had completely forgotten that he had been bitten earlier. Looking over himself he also had a couple scrapes on his legs, a cut on his right cheek, and a bruise on his side from when he tripped trying to avoid the Mightyena's attacks.

Jenny opened the kit, pulled out a bottle of disinfectant and a white cloth.

"Ok now hold still, this might sting a little bit" she said as she slowly poured some disinfectant on the cloth

She then began to gently go over the bite mark with the cloth wiping away the dirt and cleaning it out; Alex closed his eyes and groaned slightly as he felt the stinging from the disinfectant doing its job.

"So tell me, what happened back there?" Jenny asked him as she poured a little more disinfectant on the cloth and worked her way to the bottom side of his arm.

Alex took a deep breath and began to tell her what had happened; how he found Ralts lying in the woods hurt, how they got attacked by a Poochyena which is how he got bitten, and what happened at the road with the Mightyena and his uncle just before he ran into her.

"Wow, sound like you have had quite a busy day" Jenny said as she finished wrapping up his arm and putting band-aids on the scrapes on his legs.

"There we go, we're all finished" Jenny said as she closed the first aid kit and placed a band-aid on his cheek.

"By the way, what's your name?"

"My name's Alex" he said as he looked up at her.

"It's nice to meet you" she smiled at him, "Do you know where your parents are?" she asked him.

"My mom and dad are back at my Uncle Matt's house and I think my uncle is still fighting those Mightyena" he said to her.

"Ok, I'm going to see about see if I can find your uncle. Stay here ok."

"Ok, Officer Jenny" Alex said as Jenny made her way to her bike which was still parked right at the front desk.

"Growlithe, Come on out" out of the pokeball's light a Growlithe appeared next to Alex, "I need you to stay here and keep an eye on this boy for me" the Puppy pokemon nodded its head "I'll be back soon" she said as she drove off. Alex took a seat and Growlithe sat on the floor next to him.

Meanwhile…

"Alright you guys lets finish this, Ace use Close Combat and Ginger use Return" Matt commanded.

Ace and Ginger both prepared to launch their attacks but before they could finish, the two Mightyena ran back into the forest with their Poochyena right behind them.

"Good job you guys, remind me to get you guys something special when we get home" Matt said as he returned his pokemon to their pokeballs, "I wonder if Alex made it to the pokemon center" he thought to himself.

As he turned around to make his way to town Officer Jenny came speeding down the road. Matt waved Jenny down

"Excuse me I'm looking for my nephew, did you see a little boy carrying a Ralts anywhere?" he asked

"Is his name Alex?" Jenny asked.

"That's him, is he alright?"

"Don't worry he's fine, he's at the pokemon center. Climb in" she said as she turned her bike around. He got in and she sped back into town.

Back at the pokemon center, Alex was still waiting to see if Ralts was going to be ok. He stared at the emergency room door for what felt like forever. Suddenly, Growlithe jumped onto the bench he was sitting on and put a paw on him, Alex turned and began to pet it on the head. The Puppy pokemon returned the favor by giving him a lick on the cheek before lying next to Alex, placing his head on Alex's leg.

"Thanks, I needed that" he said as he continued to pet Growlithe on the head.

"Alex, you ok?" a familiar voice said

He turned and saw his uncle with Officer Jenny right behind him. He ran over, buried his head into his uncle's shoulder and started to cry.

"It's ok Alex, you did a good job" Matt said as he held his nephew tightly. Growlithe ran over to Jenny

"Good boy, thanks for your help" she said as she patted him on the head before returning him to his pokeball

"Thank you for everything Jenny" Matt said.

"You're welcome" Jenny said as she made her way out of the pokemon center. Matt walked to the bench and sat down as he wiped the tears from nephew's eyes.

"I'm really proud of you Alex; Jenny told me what you told her on the way down here" he said, "You really showed a lot of courage out there today."

Alex looked at him and embraced him again as tears began to fall down his cheeks. Matt held him and after a few minutes he started to calm down.

"Ok, I gotta go call your parents and let them know what's going on. I'll only be a few minutes ok" Matt said as he got up.

Alex wiped his tears away and nodded. As Matt walked to where the phones were, Alex started to wonder how Ralts was doing and if she was going to be ok. Matt picked up the phone and dialed his sister Kristine's cell phone.

"Hello?" she said.

"Hey sis, it's Matt" he said to her.

"Matt… where are you?"

"At the pokemon center"

"What are you doing there; I thought you and Alex were taking a walk in the woods"

"Well, we were but something came up"

"Are you both alright? What happened?"

"Don't worry we're fine, Alex is a little bandaged up but he's doing alright"

"Bandaged….. What happened?" Kris practically shouted

"Cool your jets, he's just fine… Grab Scott and get down to the pokemon center, I'll explain everything"

"Alright, we're on our way." Kris said as she hung up the phone.

"Who was that honey?" Kris turned and saw Scott walk up.

"It was Matt, we need to get to the pokemon center right now" she said.

"Did something happen?" he asked.

"Matt said he would explain when we got there" she answered. As they made their way to the door; Amanda walked up.

"You two going somewhere?" she asked.

"We're just going into town; can you watch Emily and Andrew for us?" Scott answered.

"Sure, is everything alright?" Amanda asked with a confused look on her face.

"Yeah everything is fine" Scott said as they walked out to the car.

After a twenty minute drive they arrived at the pokemon center. They rushed inside and found their son sitting on the bench outside of the emergency room.

"Alex, there you are" Kris called out to him

"Huh…" he turned and saw his parents, "Mom… Dad… what are" before he could finish, his mother grabbed him and held him tightly against her.

"We were so worried… are you ok?" she asked him frantically.

"He's just fine, no need for you to be in 'Frantic-Mommy' mode" Matt said jokingly as he walked up to them.

Kristine turned towards him with an irritated look on her face. Scott tapped her on the shoulder.

"Kris, you might want to let go… I don't think he can breathe" he said as he pointed down at his son.

"Oh, sorry sweetie" she said, loosening her grip as her son gasped for air.

"We're going back to the house and Uncle Matt is going to explain himself, isn't he" she said as she looked at Matt with an irritated look on her face again.

"No!" Alex said as he got free of his mother's embrace.

They all stared at him with a look of shock on their faces.

"I'm not leaving!" he exclaimed.

Before anyone could say anything else, the light above the emergency room switched off and Nurse Joy appeared through the doors. Alex rushed over to her as his parents wore a look of confusion on their faces. Joy took a deep breath, and then said with a smile "Your Ralts is going to be just fine."

As his face light up, Alex ran through the doors as fast as he could

"Excuse me, but are you the parents of that little boy?" she asked them.

"Yes, he is our son" Scott replied.

"There is no need to worry; his pokemon is going to be just fine" she said with a smile.

"But he doesn't have any pokemon" Kris exclaimed.

"Oh, I just assumed that Ralts belonged to him. Judging by how he was acting when he arrived here, you would think she was one of his pokemon." Joy said with a surprised look on her face.

Scott and Kris's look of confusion only grew more and more. They turned towards Matt who couldn't help but laugh.

"Take a seat you two and I'll explain everything" he said as he took a seat himself. Matt explained to them what had happened after he and Alex went for their walk together down to the last detail.

Meanwhile in the next room, Alex rushed in to see Ralts lying on a bed. She appeared to be asleep. He made his way to the bed but before he could say anything, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned and saw Nurse Joy with her finger just over her mouth.

"Shh… your Ralts is still pretty weak and it looks like she has been through a lot. Right now she needs plenty of rest" she explained to him.

"I see" he said as he turned his head.

"Don't worry; you got here just in the nick of time. She's going to make a full recovery" Joy said to him in a reassuring tone

Alex let out a sigh of relief and smiled. He then pulled up a chair and sat down next to the bed where Ralts was sleeping. Joy decided to leave the room and return to the front desk. As she made her way back into the lobby, Joy noticed Alex's parents and uncle talking.

"And that's exactly what happened" Matt exclaimed as he finished explaining what had happened. "I know this all seems pretty crazy but it's the truth."

"It's getting late, I think we should finish this tomorrow" Kris said with a sigh

"What about that pokemon that Alex found?" Scott asked.

"Alex is really worried about his new little friend and I think he made it pretty clear he wasn't leaving it alone here" Matt replied.

"Yeah but…" before Kris could finish her sentence

"Excuse me, if you'd like you all can spend the night here" Joy suggested

"That might actually be a good idea" Scott replied, Kris was about to open her mouth and say something.

"Relax sis, it's not like it could do any harm." Matt said with a smile.

"Honey, what do you think?" Kris asked as she turned to her husband.

"Hmm, I think we should let him stay the night then in the morning we will figure out what to do" Scott answered as Kris continued to look at him, "Besides, I think this might do him some good" Scott put his arm around her.

"Alright…" Kris reluctantly said.

"I'm going to call Amanda and tell her what's going on." Matt said as they all stood up.

As Nurse Joy walked into the room where Ralts and Alex were to check on them, she saw Alex in the chair leaning over with his arms and head resting on the bed. She couldn't help but smile as she reached into the closet, pulled out a fresh blanket and placed it over him to keep him warm. She turned off the light and gently shut the door as she exited the room. Scott and Kris were coming down the hall to check on their son when they spotted Joy closing the door.

"Nurse Joy, have you seen Alex?" Kris asked her.

"Shh…. they're asleep" she whispered to them.

They gently opened the door and as the light from the hall crept in they saw the figures sleeping. Scott and Kris couldn't help but smile.

"Aw, how cute" Kris said softly

"That's our boy" Scott looked at his wife

Matt came down the hall and saw them standing around outside the door. He walked up and looked in.

"Let them sleep, they've had a long day" Matt said as they gently closed the door.

"Come with me, I'll show you to your room" Joy led them to an open room.

"Good night Nurse Joy" Matt yawned as they went in get some sleep.

"Good night everyone" she made her way back to the front desk.

That night as everyone slept, Alex had a very strange dream. In the dream, he saw a Gardevoir and a Ralts in a forest together. The Ralts was playing in some flowers as a Beautifly floated by, the Gardevoir smiled as she watched Ralts play. As the Beautifly flew away, a sinister figure lurked in the bushes close by. As Gardevoir went to a Pecha berry tree and started to pick some of the fruit, they heard a slight rustling in the bushes; suddenly a large Seviper appeared and attacked the little Ralts. Ralts screamed as the massive snake attacked with its sword-like tail. It wrapped its long body around the terrified little Ralts and began to squeeze tightly, as Ralts began to scream in pain. The Fang Snake pokemon stared at the little pokemon and opened its mouth, but just before it could bring its catch up to its mouth, Gardevoir appeared and blasted the serpent with a powerful Psychic attack. As the snake was sent flying back into a tree, Gardevoir quickly grabbed Ralts and placed her by a tree.

"Keep your filthy scales off my daughter" she said as she turned to face her attacker.

"You'll pay for that" it hissed as it got up and glared at the Gardevoir.

The Seviper raised its tail and slashed at Gardevoir with a Poison Tail, as she dodged the attack her fingers began to crackle with electricity and as she landed, fired a Thunderbolt at the Fang Snake. Her attack scored a direct hit as the Seviper yelled in pain. As she finished her attack, Gardevoir raised her hands up as a ball of energy formed. As the Seviper got up she launched the ball of energy upward in the form of blue-hued electricity, it looked around but nothing happened. It charged at her and prepared to use Night Slash: but before it had a chance to connect, Gardevoir gave it another blast of Psychic. This time the Seviper flew back into a tree and broke it in half. As it raised its head it opened its mouth and fired a Dark Pulse, Gardevoir dodged it but Ralts got caught in the edge of the explosion. She screamed and landed on the ground hurt. Gardevoir looked back and saw her daughter in pain. The Seviper saw the injured Ralts as an evil smirk came across its face. It fired another Dark Pulse as Gardevoir fired another Thunderbolt to block it. The two attacks collided and exploded violently and the Seviper appeared through the smoke readying to use Poison Tail on the helpless Ralts.

As it brought its tail down, Gardevoir used Teleport to rush to her daughter's side. Ralts looked up to see her mother appear and take the attack. The serpent's sword-like tail slashed across Gardevoir's front as she screamed in pain. Gardevoir fell to the ground as the Seviper prepared to strike again, but before it could make a move, a bolt of energy came down and struck it. Gardevoir looked up as her Future Sight attack finally came through. With the last of her strength, she used Psychic to pick up a piece of a fallen tree trunk and throw it at the Seviper smashing its head and finally killing it. Ralts managed to get to her feet and limped over to her mother. As tear began to form in her eyes, Gardevoir placed her hand on her daughter.

"Be strong, my darling daughter" she said as her breathing became heavier.

"Mother, you can't die" Ralts said as a tear ran down her face.

"I love you, my dear beautiful…."

Before she could finish her sentence, Ralts felt her mother's hand fall to the ground.

"Mother… Mother…" Ralts burst into tears.

Alex screamed as he awoke from this horrible nightmare, his breathing was heavy as his heart pounded within his chest. His head ached badly, like it was about ready to split open… was it from the dream? He had been having nightmares for several nights now… but never had he experienced one as intense as this one. He got up and made his way down the hall to get a drink, as he walked he saw a figure in the dark.

"Oh, what are you doing up this early?" Nurse Joy asked as she approached him.

"I had a nightmare" he replied.

"Did you want to talk about it?" she asked

Before he could answer her, Alex suddenly started to hear someone crying

"It sounds like someone's crying" he said

"Crying… I don't hear anything" Joy replied with a confused look on her face

"I know I just heard someone crying and… ", before he could finish, he heard it again

Alex recognized it as the voice he had heard in the woods before and as he ran to find it, Nurse Joy followed closely behind him

"Where are you going?" she asked as she followed him.

As he followed the voice, Alex found himself back in Ralts' room and found her crying. He entered the room and rushed over to her.

"What's wrong? Are you ok?" he asked

She looked up at him and quickly embraced him as she continued to cry uncontrollably. Joy stood in the door way as Scott, Kris, and Matt came down, all with sleepy looks on their faces.

"It's six o'clock in the morning, what's going on over here?" Matt asked through his yawn.

"Sweetie, did you have another nightmare?" Kris asked as she rubbed her eyes.

"Your son said he had one and was about to tell me what it was about when he said he heard someone crying, but what's strange is I didn't hear anything." Joy answered her.

"I'm telling you I heard someone crying!" Alex said in an annoyed tone, "And it was the same voice I heard in the forest yesterday!" there wasn't a doubt in his mind

"Pardon me, but I would like to hear what the boy has to say" an unfamiliar voice said.

Everyone turned around and saw a gentleman standing behind them.

"Forgive me for interrupting, I was passing by and could help but hear the commotion." he said as he walked into the room.

"And who might you be?" Kris asked as she gave him an odd look.

"Of course; where are my manners, forgive me… My name is Professor John Harrison" he said very politely, "I'm a scientist, and I am an old friend of Professor Birch and of Professor Oak in Kanto. I was passing through and thought I'd stop and rest here."

"If you would young man, I would like for you to tell what you saw in that nightmare of yours and about this voice you've been hearing" he requested as he took a seat.

As everyone moved into the room and situated themselves, Alex began to tell them about the voice he had been hearing and how he it led him to Ralts back in the woods, he then went on and about what he saw in the nightmare. As he finished, John was deep in thought as he processed what had just been said. Scott and Kris looked at each other with concern in their eyes. John opened his eyes…

"I think I may have an explanation, you see pokemon like Ralts and their evolved forms Kirlia and Gardevoir are highly attuned to the emotions of humans and pokemon and are capable of read thoughts as well. They are also known for making a bond with someone they feel they can trust"

"Bonds?" Matt said with a curious look on his face.

"You mean like a close relationship?" Kris asked as her confused look grew.

"Not exactly, well yes and no…. through their psychic powers they can form a type of link between their mind and the mind of the one they trust, generally their trainers" John explained.

"So your saying, this pokemon's mind and our son's are linked?" Scott asked.

"In a manner of speaking…" John nodded, "I believe it would be safe to say that your Ralts established a connection between your mind and its mind" John said as he looked at Alex.

"Her, not it" Alex corrected the professor.

"Oh, my apologies" he said

"So you're saying what he's been hearing is actually Ralts talking to him?" Nurse Joy asked

"Yes, talking directly to his mind" he said as he poked at his head, "You have to understand, they are Psychic-type pokemon, and as such they possess many psychic abilities such as telepathy, telekinesis, and the ability to predict the future… but Ralts and their evolved forms are well known for their empathic abilities, which is why they are so attuned to emotions" he explained, "Ralts, for example, is a timid pokemon that will hide if it senses hostility, but it becomes a little braver if it senses happy feelings and optimism from others. If its trainer is in a cheerful mood, it grows cheerful and joyous in the same way. If its horns capture warm feeling from people or pokemon, its body will warm up slightly"

"Kirlia's abilities are mostly about the same as Ralts's are, only stronger. Whenever Kirlia uses its psychic abilities, the space around it can become distorted, creating mirages of nonexistent scenery. Kirlia also has the ability to see into the future and has even been observed to be able to create a rip in the dimensions, although, this hasn't been truly documented or thoroughly researched yet"

"Gardevoir is able to sense the feelings and emotions of humans and pokemon and can see the future clearly. In the wild, they live in family groups and care heavily for their young. Among this evolutionary line, Gardevoir is well known for their loyalty to their trainers, they will do whatever takes to keep their trusted trainer safe even if that means sacrificing their life for them. It's been noted that their powers peak when they're protecting their trainers, during these situations, they have the psychokinetic power to distort the dimensions and create a small black hole"

"Wow…" was all Matt could say

"So then, what about his dream?" Kris asked

"When Ralts formed a psychic bond with him, she linked their minds, so to speak… I think it's possible that through that connection your son was given a glimpse into Ralts' mind." John said as he again turned towards Alex

"So the dream I had…" Alex looked at the professor in surprise

"Was most likely a memory" John finished his sentence

Alex looked down at Ralts, who was still in his arms. She looked up at him, she had stopped crying but he still felt a sadness coming off of her as she placed her head against him and continued to hold onto him

"So you're just like me..." Alex said as he continued to hold her

Ralts looked up at him again, a look of surprise and confusion appeared on her face

"What do you mean young man?" John asked as he scratched his head in confusion

"About a month ago, Alex was attacked by a Seviper and lost someone very close to him" Scott answered him

"We were playing in the woods together and we got separated for a few minutes, a Seviper appeared and attacked me from the bushes. I tried to run but it was too quick for me. As it raised its tail to strike, I was so scared I couldn't move. And as it moved in, I heard someone scream "Alex, Look Out!" The next thing I remember was seeing Diana appear in front of me as its tail stabbed her. She yelled in pain as the snake pulled its tail out of her and as she fell to the ground it moved into bite. Suddenly, these two big black claws came out the front of its face. A Zangoose had seen the Seviper and attacked it. The Zangoose cut the Seviper's head off with its other claw and ran off. I remember there was blood everywhere as I crawled to Diana. She was in a lot of pain and I didn't know what to do. I just asked her "why?" She simply said with a smile "it's a big sister's job to protect her little brother." She didn't say anything as her hand fell to the ground. I must have passed out or something because the next thing I knew I was in a hospital." Alex felt tears form in his eyes as he finished telling his story

"I'm so sorry for your loss" John lowered his head

Alex closed his eyes as tears began to flow down his face, but then he felts a small hand wipe his tears away. He opened his eyes to see Ralts wiping his tears away. He looked down at her and held her close to him. Matt got up, walked over to Alex and he placed his hand on his shoulder

"Why don't you two go and play outside, the adults need to talk" he said with a smile

"Ok…" the boy replied

Alex got up and carried Ralts with him outside. As they left the room, Matt closed the door as he turned around. He looked over at Scott and Kris

"So what are we going to do about this?" Matt sighed as he returned to his seat

"I don't know" Scott said as he turned and brought a hand to his face

"He's not old enough to have a pokemon" Kris said as she looked at Scott

"You need to be at least ten-years old to qualify as a trainer, not to own a pokemon" Matt said as he looked at her. "Besides, given everything that's happened I really don't think he would just let that little pokemon go… not after everything that they've just been through together" Kris was about to say something but Matt cut her off, "Besides having her around might be for the best"

"What do you mean?" she asked

"He's lonely and needs a friend…" Matt replied

"And by the sound of it, Ralts needs a home and a family to take care of her…" Nurse Joy added

Scott and Kris looked at each other

"Oh come on, just let him keep her" Matt said as he looked at them, "They need each other…"

Meanwhile, Alex and Ralts walked outside and sat on a bench. The sun had begun to rise, spreading its light and warmth all around… a calm and gentle breeze blew by, kissing their faces. Alex looked over to Ralts, she seemed to be alright, yet he felt a lingering sadness around her… it was kind of strange to be actually able to feel it, not just from empathy, where you feel what someone else is feeling

But to truly be able 'feel' another's emotions, to truly understand their feelings, to feel them as if they were your own… was it because of their bond?

"So that voice I heard, that was you Ralts?" he asked

"Melody…" she said

"Huh?"

"That's my name; my mother gave it to me" her voice echoed clearly within his mind

"Wow…" he said

"I miss her…"

"I know how you feel…"

He paused for a minute before he spoke again

"Melody, I promise I'll take care of you no matter what" she looked up at him

"You mean it?" he smiled at her

"I promise, so don't you worry"

She embraced him tightly as a tear ran down her cheek. He held her warmly as he felt her sadness being replaced with hope. As the two of them held their embrace, the adults finally emerged from the pokemon center

"Come on Alex, we're heading back to Uncle Matt's house" Kris said as she and the other adults approached, Alex turned to face them

"I'm not leaving Melody behind" he said to them

"Melody?" Matt said with a curious look on his face

"That's her name" he replied, "and I'm not leaving without her… I promised I'd take care of her"

Scott and Kris were surprised by all this. They had never seen him act like this before. They looked at each other and paused for a while. Kris sighed as Scott looked at her and gave a little smile

"Alright Alex, if you're so determined about this…" Scott said as his son gave him a look of uncertainty

"Then I guess she can come home with us" Kris finished where Scott left off

Both Alex and Melody looked at them with a shocked expression

"You really mean it?" Alex asked

Both Scott and Kris nodded their heads. Melody and Alex embraced as the air began to fill with happy laughter. Tears of joy began to roll down their faces

"Aw, isn't that sweet?" Nurse Joy smiled before returning to the center. John just smiled as he also returned inside. Kris brought a hand up to her face as she tried to hold back her own tears. Scott simply placed his arm around her and smiled

"This is the first time I have seen him smile in weeks" Kris said as joyful tears began to roll down her cheek. Scott offered her a handkerchief as he continued to smile and look on. Matt let out a sigh of relief and smiled

They eventually returned to the house and as the adults talked about the recent events, Alex and Melody ran outside with his siblings and the other pokemon and played. As the adults looked on they couldn't help but smile at the scene

"So what do ya'll want to do for lunch?" Amanda asked.

"How about a picnic?" Kris suggested.

"Good idea and I know the perfect spot" Matt got to his feet as he finished his beer

They called the kids and the pokemon inside as they finished packing for the outing. Matt led the way while everyone else followed. After about a thirty minute walk they finally arrived at their site. It was a beautiful site, a clear open spot situated by a beautiful lake. A tire swing hung from a branch on a tree stretching out over the lake. As they took in the beauty of their surroundings, Alex got the feeling he had been here before. Suddenly, it hit him…

"Wait a minute… this is where I met Melody." Alex said in a surprised voice.

Matt nearly choked as he spat out his drink, "Say what?" he coughed.

"This is where I found Melody yesterday and where we were attacked by that Poochyena" he said as he looked at her.

The adults couldn't help but laugh a little. As the kids played down by the water with the pokemon, the adults spread out the blanket and set out the plates and bowls. Amanda called the kids over to eat; they were over in a heartbeat as they sat down and began to serve out their lunch. Scott poured pokemon food into bowls for the pokemon before serving himself some food. As they enjoyed their family outing, the Scott and Kris smiled at each other as they saw Alex eating happily next to Melody. They had their son back and a new member of the family

After they finished eating, everyone decided to enjoy the water and do a little fishing. While Scott sat a few feet away from on the shore with a fishing rod, Kris, Emily, and Amanda sat down at the edge with their feet in the cool water with Tony and Coco relaxing next to them. Matt and the boys decided to enjoy the tire swing. Matt swung and cannon-balled into the lake, everyone laughed as he hit the water

"Come on in, the waters great." Matt laughed as he came up for air.

Andrew swung on the tire swing and wildly jumped into the water almost landing on Matt. Alex and Melody jumped in together and splashed Matt and Andrew as they landed.

Time rolled by and after several hours, they returned to the house, exhausted from their day. As the sun began to set, they all decided to call it a day and go to bed. Matt and Amanda set up the futons for the kids while Scott and Kris set up the bed upstairs. And as the lights dimmed, whole house fell asleep. Alex felt himself starting to doze off, but just as he was about to fall asleep, he felt someone tap him on the head. Alex turned and saw Melody standing next to him

"Melody?" he yawned

"I'm sorry" she said

He could tell she was nervous about something.

"What is it Melody?" he said in a sleepy voice.

"Um… c-can I sleep with you tonight?" she asked in a nervous voice

Alex was a little surprised at her request. Alex suddenly remembered when Diana first came over to his house and spent the night. He had a nightmare and was feeling scared, Diana allowed him to crawl in bed with her

"Sure" he said as he lifted the covers

She moved to lie down next to him. As they rested their heads on the pillow, Alex couldn't help but smile as he held his new dear friend close to him as they both fell into a peaceful slumber


	2. Chapter 2

Kanto Arc

Chapter 2: The Adventure begins

Time rolled by and eventually the day of Alex's tenth birthday came around. It was 9:30am and as the sun's warm rays began to spread across Solaceon town, everyone slowly began to start the day. As Kris got breakfast ready, Scott went up stairs to wake the kids. After he woke the younger two up, Scott made his way down to Alex's room to find him up and getting ready to go.

"Well good morning, you ready to go?" he asked

"You bet, just gotta grab a few more things" Alex answered him in an excited voice as Melody, now a Kirlia, helped him finish.

As they finished, Alex felt something soft rub up against his leg. He looked down to see Sophia, his Vulpix, and Lucas, his Riolu, look up at him happily. Alex bent down and placed a hand on their heads.

"Hey you two, you ready to head out on an adventure?"

Sophia and Lucas both nodded their heads happily as Alex scratched Sophia behind her ear and scratched Lucas on the top of his head. He had received Sophia and Lucas when he was eight from Mr. and Mrs. Johnson, pokemon breeders and friends of the family. Sophia was a very shy and timid little Vulpix, who took a liking to Alex. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson decided to let Alex keep her and gave him an egg to raise as well, which 5 days later hatched into a Riolu that he named Lucas. He had a much more serious nature to him and Sophia was a little frightened of him at first. It took some time but eventually, with a little help from Melody, Sophia and Lucas became good friends. Alex, Melody, Sophia, and Lucas made their way down stairs to find everyone eating breakfast. After getting Sophia, Lucas, and Melody their breakfast, Alex grabbed his seat to enjoy his.

"So are you all packed?" Kris asked.

"Yep did it last night, just grabbing a few extra things." Alex answered as he began eating.

"So you excited about today?" Scott asked him.

"You bet, today is the day I start my journey" he answered with a great excitement in his voice, "I can't wait to get going"

"Hold on there, mister pokemon master" Scott chuckled, "First things first, we gotta go see Professor Rowan and get you your pokedex."

"I know, I know" Alex laughed.

"So, have you decided which pokemon you're going to receive from Professor Rowan?" Kris asked.

"Aren't they Turtwig, Chimchar, and Piplup?" Andrew asked.

"Yep" Alex replied as he looked towards his little brother.

"So which are you going choose, big brother?" Emily asked.

"He already has a Fire-type." Scott said as he looked over at Sophia, "So I would guess Turtwig or Piplup."

"Well actually, I don't think I need a starter pokemon from Professor Rowan" Alex said.

Scott and Andrew looked over at him. Andrew was a little surprised by his answer.

"I already have my starter pokemon" he said as he looked over at Melody, "I already have three great pokemon and I'm gonna win with the pokemon that I catch on my own."

"Alright, if that's what you want to do" Scott smiled at him.

"And I think I want to go to the other regions first" Alex looked across the table, "I want to work my way through the Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn leagues first before I take on the Sinnoh league. I gotta lot to learn and I want to take on the other leagues before I challenge home."

Scott and Kris were a little surprised. "Alright, if you really want to do that, then go right ahead" Scott smiled.

After everyone finished eating, Alex ran upstairs to grab his things and head out. Scott and Kris got everyone loaded into the car as they prepared to head out.

"Alright guys this is it, today we start our journey" Alex smiled at his pokemon before returning Sophia and Lucas to their pokeballs.

As they ran back down stairs, Scott and Kris yelled from the front door.

"Come on slow poke, we gotta get going"

"We're coming, we're coming" Alex said as they rushed through the front door

"Aren't you going to put Melody in her pokeball?" Scott asked

"Nope, she hates traveling like that" Alex answered, "She'd rather be outside with me"

"How do you know that?" Kris asked with a slightly confused look on her face.

"She told me so" Alex smiled

Kris and Scott sometimes forgot about the bond those two shared together. The link that had been created between their minds four years ago. And although they still didn't really understand it, it was there and it was very strong. And they also knew that ever since that day, Alex and Melody were practically inseparable.

Alex and Melody jumped into the car next to Emily and Andrew. Scott and Kris follow and hop into the front. "Before we go to Sandgem Town, we gotta stop by the Johnson's house first." Scott said as he looked into the back seat.

"They say they have a surprise for you guys" Kris added.

After a short ten minute drive, they arrived in the drive way of the Johnson's house. As the family got out of the car, they found Mr. Johnson carrying a case of pokemon food. While Mrs. Johnson was carrying a pokemon egg in her hands. As pokemon breeders, they helped raise pokemon and eggs for other people and as such were constantly kept busy.

"Hey guys, good morning" Mr. Johnson greeted.

"Good morning, how are you doing today?" Mrs. Johnson said with a gentle tone.

"We're doing just fine" Kris said as the group approached.

"Hi Melody" Mrs. Johnson happily said as she leaned down at the Emotion pokemon.

"How are your pokemon doing Alex?" Mr. Johnson asked as he placed the case of food down.

"See for yourself" Alex said as he pulled his pokeballs off his belt.

Alex pushed the button in the center of the balls. As the balls expanded to their actual size, he threw them into the air. They opened with a bright light. And as the light faded, Sophia and Lucas appeared in front of Alex as he caught the pokeballs. Mr. Johnson leaned down and quickly looked over the two pokemon.

"Looks like you have done a pretty good job raising them" Mr. Johnson commented.

"And it looks like you have done a great job taking care of Melody as well" Mrs. Johnson added as she place her hand on Melody's head.

"Thanks" Alex smiled

"So, I hear someone is starting their pokemon journey today" Mr. Johnson said as he looked over at Alex.

"Yep and I can't wait to get going" Alex said excitedly.

"Come with us, we have something for you" Mr. Johnson said as he picked the case of food back up.

They made their way into the house as Mr. Johnson placed the case of food into a bin. Alex returned Sophia and Lucas to their pokeballs. After emptying the case, Mr. Johnson led them into a room filled with pokemon eggs.

"Wow" Andrew exclaimed.

"There's so many of them" Emily said in amazement.

"This is our incubation room" Mr. Johnson explained, "This is where we keep all the eggs we take care of."

Mrs. Johnson made her way down one of the rows and picked up an egg. It was white and had a few red and blue triangular shapes on it

"And this one is for you" she said as she handed it to Alex.

"Wow, thank you" he replied happily.

"Can we get one too?" Emily asked.

Not wanting to be left out, Andrew jumped up "Please"

Mr. and Mrs. Johnson both laughed, "Ok, ok. Why don't you two each pick one to raise yourselves."

They both cheered as Emily made her way down a row, while Andrew went down another. Emily saw an egg that was a brownish shade with an almost cream colored zigzag going around it. "I'll take this one" she said as she grabbed the case containing the egg. Andrew found one that had a goldish color and had a brown stripe going around it. "Then I'll take this one" he grabbed the case with excitement.

"Ok, you two can take those home, but you gotta promise to raise them properly ok" Mr. Johnson said in an almost fatherly tone.

"We promise" they said practically in unison.

Everyone made their way outside and as they all said their good-byes to each other, Melody suddenly turned and looked out towards a large rock.

"Huh, what's wrong Melody?" Alex asked her.

"Something is coming" she replied.

Suddenly, a fin appeared out of the ground and made its way towards them at very quickly. Everyone quickly turned towards the approaching creature. As it came closer, Alex reached for his belt and grabbed one of his pokeballs. It stopped barely four feet away from their feet and suddenly surfaced in a small cloud of dust. As the dust began to clear, Mr. Johnson was able to identify what it was.

"It's a Gible" he said with surprise in his voice.

"What's a Gible doing in these parts?" Mrs. Johnson wondered.

The Gible looked at everyone and opened its mouth. As everyone was wondering what it was doing, Gible fired a red-orange fireball from its mouth. Melody quickly jumped and used Protect to shield everyone from the attack.

"What was that?" Scott asked.

"That was a Dragon Rage attack" Mr. Johnson said as Melody's Protect faded.

"Why did it attack us?" Kris asked in an annoyed tone.

"I don't know, I think it's trying to play" Mrs. Johnson replied.

"Playing!" Kris practically shouted.

"Gible like to fight with each other and are generally pretty gutsy" Mr. Johnson explained, "The males generally do a lot more fighting than the females and judging from the cut in its fin, I'd say this one is male."

"Well if it's a fight that it wants, then that's what it's going to get" Alex exclaimed.

"Here, hold this" he said as he handed his egg to his mother. "Melody lets teach this little guy a lesson"

Melody readied herself to battle while Gible stood there chuckling happily.

"Be careful, Gible is a combination Dragon and Ground type pokemon which means that Electric moves aren't going to have any effect on it and Fire type moves won't have much effect on it either" Mr. Johnson quickly exclaimed.

"Alright, let's use Psychic" Alex said as he pointed at the small dragon type. Melody's eyes began to glow light blue as she prepared to launch her attack. A moment later, she fired a pair of light blue beams of energy at her opponent. The Gible took the hit and was sent back a foot or so, but just got to its feet and fired another Dragon Rage.

"Melody, use Protect" Alex said urgently.

Melody quickly shielded herself from the attack and as the smoke from the explosion cleared, Gible had vanished.

"Huh, where did it go?" Alex looked around trying to locate Gible.

"It must have used Dig" Mr. Johnson said as he pointed at a hole in the ground, "Be careful, it could be anywhere"

Suddenly, Gible jumped out of the ground in front of Melody and hit her in the side. She fell back and hit the ground as Gible landed on its feet.

"Melody, are you ok?" Alex ran over to her

"I'm fine" she said as she got to her feet.

Gible suddenly started to run towards them.

"I think it's using Tackle" Mrs. Johnson exclaimed.

"Ok, then let's give him a taste of your Magical Leaf" he said as Gible continued to run towards them.

Melody began to spin around as a flurry of light green leaves began to fire towards Gible. It stopped and tried to get out of the way but way hit by a flurry of leaves and sent flying back, landing on its bottom.

"Now follow up with Psychic" Alex said with confidence in his voice.

As Melody finished her spin, her eyes began to glow light blue and as she came to a stop, unleashed another powerful psychic blast causing Gible to skid across the ground and slam into a large rock. Alex quickly reached into his bag and pulled out a pokeball.

"Alright, here goes" he said as he pushed the center button. "Go Pokeball!"

Alex threw the pokeball towards Gible. The ball hit it on the nose. The pokeball opened up as a bright red light began to engulf the Land Shark pokemon. As the light completely enveloped Gible, it disappeared into the light and was drawn into the ball as it closed. The ball fell to the ground and began to shack back and forth. Everyone watched the ball wondering if the capture would work or not. After about thirty seconds, the pokeball stopped and made a "bong" sound. As he walked up, Alex leaned down and picked his pokeball. He turned back around and held it up.

"Alright" he jumped with joy, "I did it, I did it"

"Congratulations" Scott said as he smiled.

Alex walked up to Melody and hugged her, "Thank you Melody, I couldn't have done it without you" he said happily. She looked up and smiled at him.

"Alright you two, come on we gotta get going or you'll miss the boat to Kanto" Kris said as she lead everyone to the car.

"Take care everyone" the Johnson's said as they waved good bye.

After an hour and a half of driving, Scott pulled the car into Sandgem Town. He stopped the car outside of Professor Rowan's lab as Alex practically leapt out of the back seat. As they made their way into the lab, they were greeted by the professor's assistances.

"Hello there, how can I help you" one of them asked.

"My name is Alex and I'm a beginner trainer"

"And you're here to pick up your pokedex and starter pokemon, right?" the other assistant asked him.

"Actually, I'm just here for my pokedex. I don't need a starter pokemon" Alex replied.

"Is that so" a voice said from behind.

They all turned and saw an older man who was about in his early to late fifties.

"Welcome back, Professor Rowan" one assistant said.

"So you're the famous Professor Rowan" Kris said with surprise.

"Yes that would be me" Rowan said.

"So you're here just for a pokedex, not a starter pokemon young man" Rowan asked as he approached the young trainer.

"Yes sir, see I already have a friend I have been with for a long time and I promised myself that I would start my journey with her" he said as he looked at the professor and placed his hand on Melody's head.

Professor Rowan smiled as he looked at him. "Very well young man" he said as he handed Alex a red pokedex. "This pokedex will provide you with all the information you will need through your pokemon journey."

"Thank you, sir" Alex said as he received the pokedex from Rowan.

"Good luck on your journey, young man" Rowan said as he walked towards his assistants.

"Thank you" Alex made his way back to his family as they walked back to the car.

"Buckle up everyone, we got a long trip ahead of us" Kris said as they all climbed in. 

After traveling by car for hours, they finally arrived at the Heartholme City airport, to board the next flight to Canalave City, the main port city of the Sinnoh region. The flight was long, but the kids enjoyed the flightAs they got out of the rental car, it was evident that Canalave was a busy place to be. Boats coming in and out, while people were in constant motion unloading crates from the boat and people loading boats to be shipped.

"Excuse me, we're looking for the boat the Kanto region" Scott approached a standing sailor.

"Oh, it is going to arrive at that pier over there" the sailor responded as he pointed at an empty pier, "But it isn't set to show up for another thirty minutes"

"Thank you"

Everyone walked over to the spot where the sailor said the boat would show up. While they waited for the boat to show up, Scott pulled out his favorite fishing rod, sat down and cast his line. After about 7 minutes or so his line began to twitch. As he began to reel it in, he could feel the size of whatever was on the other end of his line. He gave a strong yank and out of the water flew a Lumineon.

"Wow, what is that?" Alex asked as he pulled out his pokedex.

"_Lumineon, the Neon Pokémon. Lumineon lives in the ocean's depths. It lures Pokémon by flashing light in the patterns on its tail fins._" said the voice form the pokedex.

"Quite a catch, if I do say so myself" Scott said as he threw it back into the water.

"Can I give it a try, please" Alex asked.

"Alright, knock yourself out" Scott handed him the rod.

After a while, Alex was getting edgy. "Man, I got nothing."

Scott laughed, "Be patient, let the fish come to you."

Suddenly, there was a tug on the line. Alex quickly grabbed tightly and started to reel the line in. As the line came closer and closer, he gave a sharp tug and pulled a strange fish out of the water. It had tattered blue fins, large gloomy eyes, and these big lips that looked like they were frozen in a frown. Everyone stared at this creature.

"What in the heck?" Alex pulled out his pokedex as he looked puzzlingly at the fish.

"_Feebas, the Fish Pokémon. Although extremely ragged, it's a tough Pokémon that can live in almost any kind of water. Its evolved form is Milotic._"

"A Feebas, now that is a rare catch indeed" Scott said in amazement.

"What do I do with it?" Alex gave his father a confused look.

"Well you could throw it back, but if I were you I'd keep it" he said, "It might not look like much, but it's pretty rare to come across one of these pokemon."

"It's really that hard to find?"

"Yeah, so you might want to think about catching this one." Scott suggested. "Who knows, it might come in handy"

Alex gave him an odd look, but he knew his dad knew what he was talking about… Most of the time anyway…

"If you say so" Alex reluctantly agreed.

"Alright Melody, let's get in there and use Psychic" he said as the two of them got to their feet.

Melody fired a blast of psychic energy at the Feebas, but as it got closer, Feebas' body suddenly became surrounded in a glowing reflective substance. As Melody's attack hit, it was bounced off and was sent flying back where it came from.

"Protect!" Alex yelled as the psychic energy came closer.

Melody quickly put up the barrier and blocked the returned attack.

"What was that?" Alex asked as her Protect faded.

"_Mirror Coat, a retaliation move that counters any special attack, inflicting double the damage taken_" his pokedex answered his question.

"A move that returns special attacks at double the damage" Scott said in amazement.

"I gotta catch this" Alex said as he put his pokedex away.

"But all of her attacking moves are special attacks, if you keep going like this you'll just get stomped by your own attacks" Scott warned him.

"Hmm… I got it" Alex reached at his belt, "Alright, if special attacks won't work, then we'll just have to get it close." Alex threw the pokeball, "Go Lucas!" The pokeball opened as a bright light erupted out of it. As the light faded, Lucas appeared ready to battle.

"Alright little buddy, let's use Quick attack"

Lucas charged and slammed into Feebas at high speed, sending it back onto the pier. Feebas managed to get itself up right and open its mouth. A light blue ball formed in front of its mouth and then light blue beams were fired towards the Riolu.

"Dodge it quick"

Lucas quickly jumped out of the path of the beams as the hit the spot where the Riolu was standing. As they converged, the spot where Lucas was a moment ago became covered in a sheet of ice.

"That's an Ice Beam attack" Scott said.

"Lucas, counter with Force Palm" Alex commanded.

Lucas landed and ran towards Feebas. As he approached, he thrusted his paw onto its side and hit Feebas with a powerful shockwave. Feebas flew a foot into the air and landed on its side. Alex grabbed an empty pokeball out of his bag and threw it at the injured Fish pokemon. Feebas became enveloped in red light as the ball opened and was drawn into the ball as it closed. The ball landed on the pier and shook for a few seconds before it came to a halt. Alex walked over and picked up the pokeball.

"Thanks Lucas, you were great" he said as he returned Lucas to his pokeball.

Scott got a fairly large bucket and filled it with water. "Let's have a look at your catch" he said as he placed the bucket down at his feet.

Alex opened the pokeball and Feebas appeared in the bucket. Scott quickly looked over it. "Ah, this one is female" he said as he placed it back into the water.

"How can you tell?" Emily asked.

"I do a lot of fishing and I can tell these things" he said proudly.

"Well, that makes coming up with a name easier" Alex said as he leaned down towards his new pokemon.

"Now let me think, what would be a good name for you?" he said as he tried to think of a good name. "Hmmm… how about… Mimi"

Feebas started to splash around happily. Melody walked up and tapped Alex.

"She says she likes it" Melody said.

"Ok, then from now on your name is Mimi" Alex said with a smile.

Alex reached into his bag and pulled out a small case of pokemon food. He poured some into his hand, brought both together, and then slowly placed them into the water near the surface. Mimi slowly made her way over and looked at what he had in his hands. Slowly she began to taste the pokemon food and after a taste of it, she began to work her way to eating the rest of it. As she finished, Alex began to pet the top of her head with one hand as he reached for her pokeball with the other hand.

"Mimi, welcome to the group" he said with a smile as he returned her to her pokeball.

Suddenly, they all heard a loud horn. They turned and saw a large boat approach the pier where they were at.

"That must be it" Scott said as he got to his feet.

As the boat came right up next to the pier, Alex prepared to board. He turned to his family as they all shared a big hug together. As they broke it, Alex and Melody made their way up the ramp and onto the boat.

"Good luck sweetie" Kris said to him.

"Good luck big bro" Andrew said.

"Take care of yourselves you two" Scott said as he waved his arms

"And don't do anything crazy big brother" Emily said as she also waved her arms.

"Good bye guys, we'll see ya later" Alex said as he waved good bye to his family.

As the boat made its way to Kanto, sun began to set and Alex started to feel a little drowsy. Melody started to feel herself getting tired too. They were shown a room to stay in and as he placed his things down on the floor and his egg in a safe place, Alex leapt onto one bed and got comfortable. Melody decided to take the other bed and got herself situated. They both felt their eyes growing heavy and eventually gave in. As they both drifted off, Alex said to himself,

"Kanto league, here we come."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Road to Pewter City

It had been several days since they had left Sinnoh on their journey to Kanto, morning had finally arrived as Alex and Melody emerged from the lower decks and stepped onto the upper deck. As they looked out onto the wide sea, the sun beautifully reflecting off the surface of the water, a calm ocean breeze came across their faces. Alex placed his bag and the egg case down, reached for his belt and grabbed one of his pokeballs. The ball opened as he threw it into the air and as the light faded, the Gible that he caught yesterday appeared.

"Alright, let's see what the pokedex says about you" he said as he pulled out his pokedex.

"_Gible, the Land Shark Pokémon. Gible once lived in the tropics, and to avoid cold it lives in caves warmed by geothermal heat. Gible are good diggers and will hide in holes and wait for prey to pass by_" the voice from the pokedex said.

"Cool" Alex said in amazement, "so what attacks can this little guy use?"

"_Gible's attacks: Tackle, Dragon Rage, Dig, Sandstorm_"

"Wow, I didn't know this thing could tell me that"

Alex reached for his belt again and called out Mimi, a Feebas he caught at the dock yesterday. As Mimi appeared, he pointed the pokedex at her.

"Ok, so let's see what this says about you Mimi"

"_Feebas' attacks: Flail, Water Pulse, Ice Beam, Mirror Coat_"

"Wow, that's really good Mimi" he said with a smile.

Melody walked over and saw a slight blush come across Mimi's face. Alex called out the rest of his pokemon. Sophia and Lucas appeared next to Mimi and Gible as Alex brought the pokedex up.

"_Riolu's attacks: Force Palm, Quick Attack, Foresight, Counter_"

"_Vulpix's attacks: Ember, Tail Whip, Energy Ball, Extrasensory_"

"Whoa, Sophia can use Energy Ball" he said with surprise. "Wait… what kind of move is Energy Ball?"

"It's a Grass-type move" said a voice from behind.

Alex turned and saw a guy with short black hair walk up from. He was a little taller than Alex and was probably a few years older than him. As he came closer, Alex couldn't help but ask, "Who are you?"

"My name is Ben" he said.

"That's pretty impressive that your Vulpix can use Energy Ball. That can really come in handy" Ben said as he looked over at Sophia.

"Yeah, but I don't remember teaching her that move" Alex said in confusion.

"That's because it's an Egg-move" Ben replied.

"An Egg-move?" Alex gave Ben a confused look.

"Your Vulpix inherited that move from its parents, more specifically her father" he explained.

"Wow"

"And I think the same holds true for Extrasensory" he added.

"What's that?" Alex asked.

"It's a Psychic-type attack" Ben explained.

"That is so cool" Alex said as he turned and looked at Sophia.

"You're a beginner trainer aren't you?" Ben asked.

"How did you guess?"

"Call it a wild guess" Ben smirked

"Yeah, I'm just starting out" Alex said as he scratched the back of his head.

"And with five pokemon already…"

"Well actually, I have an egg I'm raising right over there" he pointed over at where his bag and case were.

"Where you from kid?" Ben asked as he saw Alex's pokemon

"O yeah, I forgot to introduce myself" he said as he looked back at Ben. "My name is Alex. I'm ten years old and I'm from the Sinnoh region"

"It's nice to meet you, I'm from Kanto and I'm fourteen years old" Ben said, "What part of Sinnoh?"

"Solaceon Town" Alex responded.

"I'm from Viridian City" Ben smiled.

Alex suddenly felt something brush up against his leg. He looked down to see Sophia looking up at him.

"Ok, come here girl" he said as he leaned down and picked up Sophia.

Ben stretched his hand out and was about to pet Sophia, but she tensed up and buried her head into her trainer's shirt. Ben pulled his hand back slightly.

"Sorry, she is a little shy" Alex said as he looked at her. "It's ok Sophia; Ben's not going to hurt you."

Ben brought his hand up and gently placed it on top of the Vulpix's head. She tensed up again but as Ben began to gently pet her head, she started to loosen up a little. Sophia turned her head and looked at Ben curiously. She saw a very warm and kind smile across his face.

"There there, you're ok" he said in a warm tone

Ben moved his hand from the top of Sophia's head to the side of her face and began to gently scratch the side of her face. As he continued to gently scratch the small Fox pokemon, she started to lean her head into his hand. Alex smiled as he felt her starting to relax.

"Wow, I've never seen her so calm around someone new before" he thought to himself.

"He seems like a very kind-hearted person" Melody said to him.

"Try scratching her behind the ear, she loves that" Alex suggested.

Ben moved his hand and began to work behind Sophia's ear. She was loving the treatment and began to smile happily. Melody could tell that she was enjoying herself and that her nervousness was gone.

"Looks like you've made a new friend" Alex said as he looked at his Vulpix.

"How long have you had this little one?" Ben asked as he continued his treatment.

"Hmm… almost two years now" Alex replied. "She has always been nervous around strangers and she hasn't had any battle experience either."

"I thought as much" Ben replied.

"Is it that obvious?"

"My parents are breeders and they taught me everything I know"

"So you're a pokemon breeder?"

"I'm studying to become one. My goal is to become a top breeder"

"Cool"

"Can I ask you something?" Ben asked.

"Sure" Alex replied.

"You say you're a starting trainer from Sinnoh, so why are you going to Kanto? Why aren't you starting in the Sinnoh league?"

"Well, I want to work my way through the other leagues first before I challenge the Sinnoh league. Once I finish the Sinnoh league, I want to challenge the Elite Four."

"I see" Ben said as a smile came across his face.

"My goal is to become the best I can be. And my dream is to become a Pokemon Master" Alex said with great confidence.

"So how much longer do you think it will be before we get to Kanto?" he asked.

"We still got probably less than an hour left to go before we arrive" Ben replied

Alex suddenly noticed a pokeball on Ben's belt.

"Hey, can I ask you a favor?" he asked

"What's up?" Ben looked at him

"I want to get Sophia used to battling, so could you help me train?"

"Sure, I'll help you out" he said as he placed his bag down next to Alex's.

As Ben and Alex took their places on the deck, Alex placed Sophia down, while Ben reached for his belt and grabbed a pokeball. A bright light erupted from it and an Elekid appeared in front of Ben.

"What is that?" Alex asked as he reached for his pokedex.

"_Elekid, the Electric Pokémon. Elekid waves its arms to produce a strong electrical charge and gains strength when lightning is present._" replied the pokedex.

"I have been raising this little one for some time now" Ben said.

"Sophia, you ready to get started?" Alex asked.

Sophia turned and looked nervously at her trainer.

"Just do your best, ok" he said in a reassuring tone.

She continued to stare at him nervously. Suddenly, Lucas came up and placed a paw onto Sophia.

"Rio Rio Riolu" he said to her.

Alex turned to Melody.

"What did he say to her?" he asked.

"He said; You can do it, I believe in you" she answered.

Sophia looked at Lucas.

"Vulpix" she said with a smile.

"Rio Rio" Lucas said as he made his way back to the other pokemon.

"She said, Thank you. And he said, Good Luck" Melody said.

"Thanks Lucas" Alex said as he looked at him.

"You guys ready to begin?" Ben asked.

"Yep" Alex said as he turned to face him.

"Then let's get started, you can have the first attack."

"Thanks, Sophia use Ember"

Sophia opened her mouth as small bolts of fire began to shoot toward Elekid.

"Elekid use Thunder Shock"

Elekid spun its arms for a second and sparks began to form around its head. It then fired a small blast of electricity towards the Fox pokemon. As the two attacks flew, they collided and exploded in mid air.

"Ok Elekid, let's use Thunder Punch" Ben commanded.

Elekid clenched its fist as it began to glow yellow and sparks of electricity surrounded its fist as Elekid then began to charge. A look of shock came across Sophia's face as she shook nervously.

"Calm down Sophia, let's try Energy Ball" Alex said

Sophia opened her mouth and a greenish-blue ball of energy began to form in front of her mouth. Elekid brought its fist up and as it prepared to punch, Sophia launched her attack. The ball of energy flew forward and struck Elekid in the center of its chest, exploding on impact and sending it flying back a few feet. As it hit the ground, small greenish-blue sparks appeared around Elekid's body. The other pokemon began to cheer Sophia on as her expression changed to one of excitement.

"Way to go, great shot Sophia" Alex congratulated her. "Now, let's follow up with Ember"

Sophia fired another blast of Ember at Elekid as it got to its feet.

"Elekid, Protect" Ben commanded.

Elekid crossed its arms as it protected itself from the attack.

"Let's use Extrasensory" Alex said as the flames hit the barrier.

Sophia's brown eyes began to glow yellow as a bright, almost rainbow colored beam was released from her eyes and struck Elekid as its protective barrier fell.

"Energy Ball"

"Elekid, Quick Attack"

As Sophia prepared to strike again, Elekid charged and slammed into her. Sophia lost her attack and fell to the ground.

"Thunder Punch" Ben commanded.

Elekid clenched its fist and prepared to strike the Fox pokemon.

"Sophia, dodge it quickly" Alex said urgently.

She managed to roll out of the way as Elekid's Thunder Punch struck the ground.

"Thunder Shock"

As Sophia tried to get to her feet, she was zapped by a blast of electricity courtesy of Elekid.

"Now follow with Quick Attack"

Elekid again charged and slammed into her with speed. Sophia hit the ground again.

"Are you ok?" Alex asked with worry in his voice.

"I think that's enough for now" Ben said.

Alex went over to check on Sophia. He picked her up and held her in his arms. Ben walked over and pulled a super potion out of his bag.

"Let me see her" he said as he approached.

Alex placed her on a table and Ben looked at her injuries. Ben then began to spray the potion on her.

"Is she gonna be ok?" Alex asked

"Don't worry; she just has a couple scratches. A shot of this and a little rest and she'll be as good as new" Ben replied.

Alex placed his hand on Sophia's head as she looked up at her trainer.

"You did great, I'm really proud of you" he said with a smile.

She smiled back at him as he continued to pet her. Alex gently picked her up, took a seat and placed her in his lap. She curled up and fell asleep almost immediately.

"Alright, come here Elekid" Ben said as he turned his attention to his own pokemon.

Elekid walked over and received a spray of super potion as well. Ben patted him on the shoulder before he ran off to play with the other pokemon. Alex continued to pet Sophia as she slept soundly in his lap. After a few minutes, he suddenly felt something poke his leg. He looked down to see Gible standing next to his seat.

"What is it Gible?" he asked.

"Gib Gible Gible" the Land Shark said to him.

Alex gave him a confused look. Suddenly, Melody's voice entered his mind.

"He wants to know what his name is" she giggled.

"O yeah, I still haven't come up with a name for you yet have I" he said. "Now let me think, what should I call you?" he pondered.

"Hmm… how about Zack" he said.

Gible nodded his head happily.

"Ok, then Zack it is"

Gible ran over and started to play with the other pokemon. Ben walked over and placed Mimi in a small tank of water. Placing the tank onto the table, Ben reached for his belt again and grabbed two more pokeballs.

"Alright, come on out" he said as the balls opened.

Out of the light, a small blue bird with white wings that looked like clouds and a yellow duck-like pokemon holding its head appeared. Alex grabbed his pokedex.

"_Swablu, the Cotton Bird Pokémon. Swablu loves cleanliness and is quick to wipe of any unclean surface with its cotton-like wings. Swalblu also love to perch on people's heads_."

"_Psyduck, the Duck Pokémon. Psyduck suffers frequent headaches and can exhibit mysterious attacks when they become especially intense_."

"You two go have fun with the other pokemon, ok" he said with a smile.

Both pokemon nodded and happily did as they were told and joined the others. Ben pulled up a chair and got comfortable as he watched all the pokemon playing together.

"Do you know where the first gym is in Kanto?" Alex asked.

"That would be the Pewter City Gym" Ben answered.

"Is that where the ship is going?"

"No, this ship is going to Vermilion City"

"How far away is Pewter City from Vermilion?"

"It's a fair distance, but I know a short cut that can get you there in no time"

"Really?"

"Yeah" Ben explained, "There is a cave just outside of Vermilion called Diglett Cave, go through there and you'll end up just outside of the Viridian Forest. Just go through the forest and it's a short walk to Pewter City"

"Got it, thanks" Alex gratefully said

"I'm actually heading that way myself, so I'll show it to you"

"That would be awesome, thank you"

A half hour later, Sophia woke up from her nap. Giving a long yawn as she slowly opened her sleepy brown eyes. She turned and looked up to see her trainer smiling at her.

"Hey sleepy head, how you feeling?" Alex said in a soft voice.

"You want to go play with the other pokemon?"

She nodded and jumped out of his lap as she made her way to play. Alex leaned back into his chair as he got comfortable. Ben looked over and smiled.

"She is a shy little one but she is really sweet" Alex said as he smiled.

"Hey, do you mind if I ask you something?" Ben asked

"Yeah?"

"How did you know that your Gible wanted a nick name?"

"Oh, Melody told me" Alex answered.

"Melody?" Ben gave him a confused look

"Melody is my Kirlia and closest friend" Alex replied, "I met her when I was visiting family in Hoenn back when I was six, we have been together since"

"So you can understand what she says to you?"

"She speaks to me telepathically"

"You two must really have a close bond" Ben said in amazement

Alex nodded. "You have no idea" he said to himself

"There it is, Vermilion City" Ben said.

Alex looked in awe. He was amazed at the sight. The Vermilion City harbor looked as busy as the Canalave City harbor. As he admired the view, the ship pulled into an open pier.

"Alright everybody, time to go" Alex got to his feet and returned his pokemon to their pokeball as Melody walked to him. After grabbing their belongings and Alex's egg case, both he and Ben proceeded to exit the boat and enter the city. Vermilion was split into two main sections: the center city and the port. The port was busy as Canalave's Alex remarked. As the friends made their way through the city, they eventually came across a cave just outside of the city.

"This is it, Diglett cave" Ben said as they stood at the mouth of the cave.

"Well, let's get going" Alex said as he began to run into the cave with Melody not far behind him.

"There are Diglett and Dugtrio throughout the cave so watch your step" Ben said as he followed.

As they walked through the cave, they started to hear noises. Suddenly, many small brown creatures with red noses started to poke their heads out of the ground.

"What the?" Alex reached for his pokedex.

"_Diglett, the Mole Pokémon. Diglett love to create underground tunnels. If a Diglett digs through a field, it leaves the soil perfectly tilled and ideal for planting crops._"

"_Dugtrio, the Mole Pokémon and the evolved form of Diglett._ _Its three heads move alternately, driving it through tough soil to depths of over 60 miles. In battle, it digs through the ground and strikes the unsuspecting foe from an unexpected direction_."

"It's best if we just leave them be, they may not look it but those little guys can be pretty dangerous when threatened or annoyed" Ben said.

"Right" Alex turned as they found a way around the pokemon.

As they continued through the cave, a Diglett or a Dugtrio would pop up out of the ground every now and then. Ben saw the exit up ahead. They all ran as the light from outside shined brightly on their faces. They saw a path ahead that lead into a forest.

"Well, this is the Viridian Forest" Ben said.

"So Pewter City is just on the other side of these trees?" Alex asked.

"Yep, I used to play in the forest when I was a kid so I know this place like the back of my hand. Once we're through it's a short walk to Pewter" Ben answered.

They entered the forest and as they walked along the dirt path in front of them, Alex took in the beauty of their surroundings. Melody smiled as a pair of Butterfree hovered over a patch of flowers in a clearing. A Caterpie crawled its way up a tree to get at a leaf on a tall branch. A Spearow perched on a branch looking down the path they were walking on. Alex looked in a tree to see a Pidgey in its nest as a Pidgeotto returned to feed its baby. A trio of Rattata were playing near the bushes ahead of them. As they continued they spotted a small pond in a clearing.

"Let's stop here and take a break" Ben said as he placed his bag down.

"Good idea, I'm hungry" Alex replied.

Ben laughed, "Well hang on, I'll have something cooked up soon"

"You can cook?" Alex said with surprise.

"Yeah, it's a hobby and a great stress reliever" Ben answered with a smile.

As Ben pulled some supplies out of his bag, Alex decided to let his pokemon out for some fresh air. After they appeared, Sophia and Lucas began to play with each other, while Zack, being coldblooded, sat in the sun warming up. Mimi appeared in the pond and began to swim around happily. Alex and Melody helped Ben get lunch going by gathering up some firewood for him. After getting a fire going, Ben let his pokemon out to play. Psyduck ran over and joined Mimi in the pond, while Elekid joined Sophia and Lucas. Swablu decided to perch itself on Ben's head. Ben smiled as he got to cooking. Alex sat down against a tree as Melody sat next to him. Alex suddenly felt his eyes getting a little heavy. Melody looked up and saw him fall asleep. She couldn't help but giggle. Feeling a little tired herself, she rested her head against him before drifting off. Both of them were awoken to a delicious aroma. Opening their eyes, they saw Ben standing in front of them with a bowl of soup for each of them.

"I thought you said you were hungry" Ben said jokingly.

"Guess we fell asleep" Alex said as he stretched his arms out.

"Here you go" Ben said as he handed them their lunch.

"That reminds me, I gotta get everyone their lunch" Alex said as he placed his bowl down.

"Taken care of" Ben said.

Alex looked over to see all the pokemon eating together happily by the pond.

"Wow, thank you" he said in amazement, "What about Mimi?"

"Fed and happy" Ben answered, "I gave her a special blend of pokeblocks in her food" he added.

"Pokeblocks?" Alex gave him a confused look.

"Think of them like the Hoenn equivalent to Sinnoh Poffins" Ben explained.

"Hoenn? I thought you said you were from Kanto"

"I am, but I spent a lot of time with my grandparents who live in Hoenn. They taught me how to cook and how to make pokeblocks"

"Oh… so what kind of pokeblocks did you give to Mimi?" Alex asked.

"I gave her a blend of dry blocks" Ben answered.

"Why dry ones? What will those do?" Alex asked as he picked up his soup and began to eat.

"They will help make her more beautiful"

"More beautiful?"

"That's how Feebas evolves into Milotic, you need to make them more beautiful" Ben explained.

"Wow, I didn't know that" Alex replied in amazement.

"It's said that as Feebas become more beautiful, their rocky scales begin to gleam like diamonds" Ben added.

"Wow…" Alex said as he looked over at Mimi.

After they finished their lunch, Ben and Alex packed up and called everyone back into their pokeballs. Melody helped them finish packing as they got ready to continue through the forest. As they continued thru the forest, they began to hear a buzzing sound. Ben looked around; poking his head through the bushes he saw a hive of Weedle, Kakuna, and Beedrill.

"Uh oh…" he said to himself.

Alex poked his head in and saw the hive. Grabbing his pokedex, he held it up towards the Bug pokemon.

"_Weedle, the Hairy Bug Pokémon. Although not very dangerous, it is armed with a sharp stinger on its head. Weedle spend much of the time eating leaves from trees."_

"_Kakuna, the Cocoon Pokémon. Kakuna is an evolved form of Weedle. Kakuna hang from trees and remain inactive until they evolve into deadly Beedrill."_

"_Beedrill, the Poison Bee Pokémon. Beedrill is the finall evolved form of Weedle. Beedrill are highly territorial and normally live in colonies. Disturbing a swarm of Beedrill will cause the whole colony to attack._"

"If we're quiet we can sneak past them" Ben whispered.

They tried to make their way around as quietly as possible, but Alex accidently stepped on a twig. The snapping of the twig alerted the Beedrill, who swarmed almost instantly. Ben, Alex and Melody ran as fast as they could, but the swarm of Beedrill was right behind them.

"Got any bright ideas?" Alex asked as they ran.

"Yeah, run faster" Ben said as he quickened his pace.

They all quickened their pace, but the swarm wouldn't give up the chase.

"Why are they so angry with us?" Alex said as he opened his pokedex once more.

"_Beedrill are highly aggressive and will chase after intruders relentlessly. Beedrill's signature attack is Twin Needle._"

"We can't run forever" Alex said as he closed his pokedex.

"We gotta think of a way to lose them" Ben said as he looked back at the angry Beedrill.

"I got an idea" Alex said as he reached for his belt.

"Zack use Sandstorm now!" he said as he turned to face the incoming swarm.

As the light from the pokeball faded, Zack began to swing his arms around as a violent sandstorm began to form. As they became enveloped in the veil of sand, the Beedrill began to turn around and fly back towards their hive.

"That was some quick thinking" Ben said as he caught his breath.

"Thanks little buddy" Alex returned Zack to his pokeball as he caught his breath as well.

"Looks like we got chased to the edge of the forest" Ben said, "We're almost there"

"Awesome" Alex replied.

The sun began to set as Pewter City came within sight. As they made their way into town, Alex could see that Pewter City was a totally different from Solaceon Town. There were plenty of building around and on top of a hill he saw what looked like either a museum or a laboratory. They eventually found their way to the pokemon center.

"We'll stay here tonight and head to the gym in the morning" Ben said as they approached the front desk.

"No argument there" Alex said as he and Melody walked behind him.

After receiving a room key from Nurse Joy, they made their way to their rooms, said good night to each other and shut the doors. Ben placed his things down, took a shower, and climbed into bed. Alex on the other hand simply placed his bag and his egg down, slipped off his jeans, and leapt onto the bed. He was exhausted and just wanted to go to sleep. Melody took the other bed and fell asleep instantly.

"Tomorrow, I get my first badge… I can't wait…" Alex thought to himself before falling asleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The Pewter City Gym

As the sun rose the following morning, its light pierced through the windows of the pokemon center. Rays of light began to dance on Melody's face as she stirred. As she rubbed her eyes, she looked over at the other bed to see her trainer still sleeping. She smiled as she got out of her bed and walked over to his bed.

"Come on sleepy head, time to get up" she said to him.

Alex opened his sleepy eyes. He turned his head and saw Melody standing next to him.

"Good morning sleepy head" she giggled

"Good morning" he yawned

After taking a shower, Alex got dressed, grabbed his things and they made their way down stairs to the lobby. Ben was already down there finishing his breakfast. Alex and Melody walked over to his table and sat down.

"Good morning you two" Ben said

"Good morning" they replied

After placing his bag down on the floor and his egg on the table, Alex let his other pokemon out and got them their breakfast. As they enjoyed their food, Alex got himself and Melody something to eat.

"So, today is your battle with the Pewter City gym leader" he said

"What kind of pokemon are at the Pewter Gym" Alex asked

"Brock, the gym leader, specializes in Rock-type pokemon" Ben answered him

"Rock-types huh"

"Rock-type pokemon are very strong when it comes to defense, so don't expect this to be easy"

"So what do you recommend?" asked Alex

"Let's see, you have a Psychic-type, a Fire-type, a Water-type, a Fighting-type, and a Dragon/Ground-type" Ben said

"The best way to beat a Rock pokemon is to use a Water or Grass-type pokemon, so your best bet is going to be to use your Feebas"

"Unless there is water at the gym, I don't think Mimi is going to do too well" Alex said

"How fast are Rock pokemon?" he asked

"Generally, not very fast but their defense makes up for it" Ben replied

"Then I think I'll use Lucas"

"Your Riolu… well Fighting-types do have an advantage over Rock-types"

"And Lucas is really fast; we'll run circles around them"

"Have you thought about your second pokemon?"

"Huh…"

"Each trainer is allowed to use two pokemon at the gym"

"Hmm… I think I'll use Zack"

"Your Gible?"

"Yeah, he saved our butts yesterday and I want to see what he can really do"

After everyone finished their breakfast, Alex returned his pokemon to their pokeballs, grabbed his things and headed out. Ben led them to the gym. The Pewter City gym was unlike the other buildings in the city, the gym itself looked like it was made out of rocks and boulders. It almost looked like it had been made a very long time ago. They entered through the doors and found themselves in a large open room. The field in front of them was very rocky and rough. Large jagged rocks and boulders littered the area. Yet on the far side of the field, there was a young man standing on a stone pedestal.

"Welcome to the Pewter City gym. My name is Brock and I am the leader of this gym"

"I'm Alex and I'm here to challenge you for a badge"

"I accept your challenge"

Alex took his place opposite of Brock, while Ben watched from a balcony just over the battlefield.

"Each of us will use two pokemon and the battle will be over when both of one sides pokemon are unable to continue. In addition, only you are allowed to switch pokemon in this battle. Do you understand the rules of this battle?" Brock said to his opponent.

"I understand and I'm ready" Alex replied.

"Then let's get started. Go Geodude"

Out of the pokeballs light, a rocky head with two muscular arms appeared. Alex reached for his pokedex as he looked at this pokemon.

"_Geodude, the Rock Pokémon. Geodude is often found on mountain roads with half of its body buried in the ground so it can observe mountain travelers._"

"Good luck" Ben said from the balcony

"Thanks" Alex reached for his belt

"Go Lucas" Alex yelled as he threw one of his pokeballs

It opened and Lucas appeared ready to battle.

"Geodude, Tackle" Brock commanded

The floating Rock pokemon charged at the Emanation pokemon.

"Lucas, dodge and use Force Palm" Alex commanded

Lucas jumped backwards as Geodude slammed into the ground where he was just standing. As it looked up, Lucas thrust his paw at the Rock pokemon's forehead and let loose a powerful shockwave of energy, sending it back a few feet.

"Now follow with Quick Attack"

Lucas charged as Geodude was recovering from the Force Palm. Lucas slammed into the Rock pokemon, but Geodude looked like it didn't even feel that attack. As Lucas jumped backwards to put some distance between him and his opponent, Alex couldn't help but wonder "How come it didn't feel that attack?"

"Alex, Normal-type attacks don't have much effect on Rock pokemon" Ben yelled from the balcony.

"Geodude, Rock Throw" Brock commanded

Geodude raised its right arm and punched the ground in front of it, sending rocks flying towards its opponent.

"Dodge it" Alex yelled

"Follow with Tackle" Brock said

Lucas managed to evade the incoming rocks, but didn't see Geodude in time to evade it. Geodude slammed into the Riolu and sent him crashing to the ground.

"Tackle once more"

"Use Counter"

As Geodude flew towards the injured Emanation pokemon, an orange glow appeared around Lucas. As the Rock pokemon tackled Lucas, Geodude was sent flying back into one of the large rocks that blanketed the field. Lucas managed to get to his feet as the smoke cleared where Geodude had landed.

"This isn't going to work… all we can use that will do some damage is Force Palm and Counter" Alex thought to himself. "That Geodude is a little quicker than I thought and we can't act fast enough to dodge both Rock Throw and Tackle at the same time"

"If only we could use Quick Attack, then maybe we… wait that's it!" an idea came to him.

"Geodude, Rock Throw" Brock commanded, "then follow into Tackle"

"Use Quick Attack" Alex commanded

"That's the wrong move" Ben yelled

As Geodude's fist slammed into the ground sending rocks flying, Lucas charged, dodging the incoming rocks with ease.

"What's he up to?" Ben thought to himself as Geodude prepared use Tackle

"Alright, now take that speed and use Force Palm" Alex yelled

Lucas sped towards Geodude, brought his paw to the level of his eye and thrust into the center of Geodude's face. A blast of energy erupted from Lucas's paw and sent the Rock pokemon flying half way across the battle field. Geodude crashed into the ground a few feet in front of Brock.

"Geodude is unable to continue" Brock returned his pokemon to its pokeball.

"Good job Lucas" Alex smiled.

"Oh I get it; he used the speed from Quick Attack to increase the impact of the Force Palm" Ben noted, "Not bad at all"

"I figured if we could use the speed to dodge attacks easier and maybe add a little more power to our attack" Alex explained, "but I didn't think it would work that well"

"I have to say that was impressive" Brock said, "but you haven't won this battle yet"

"I'm ready when you are" Alex said confidently

"Go, Onix" Brock yelled as light erupted from his second pokeball. As the light faded a massive stone snake-like pokemon appeared and roared loudly.

"That thing is huge!" Alex stared at the enormous pokemon.

"_Onix, the Rock Snake Pokémon. It tunnels through the ground which shakes when it raises its thunderous roar. It can move the ground at fifty miles per hour._ _If Onix takes a hard enough blow and its body falls apart, it can regrow the rest in a matter of a few weeks. A fully grown Onix can reach an enormous 28 feet 10 inches, or 8.8 meters._" the pokedex explained.

"Dang" he said as he placed his pokedex in his back pocket, "Lucas, think you can still keep going?"

The Riolu turned and nodded at his trainer.

"Be careful, that Onix looks strong" Ben said

"Onix, Tackle" Brock commanded

Onix roared as it prepared to strike

"Dodge it, then use Force Palm" Alex said urgently

"Screech"

Lucas managed to dodge Onix's Tackle and connected with Force Palm damaging Onix, but as he landed Onix let out a loud ear piercing screech. The Riolu covered his ears to try and block it out, but the screech was agonizingly loud. Lucas fell to his knees as the Rock Snake continued its ear piercing screech.

"Onix, Bind it"

Onix's long stone tail wrapped around the Emanation pokemon and squeezed tightly.

"Force Palm" Alex yelled

Lucas tried to get one of its arms free, but Onix's grip was too strong. The more he struggled to get free the tighter Onix's grip became.

"Onix, lets finish this" Brock said.

The Rock Snake pokemon threw the Emanation pokemon and sent it flying. Lucas flew to the other side of the field, Alex ran up and caught his friend in his arms but the Riolu was out of it.

"Are you ok?" he asked as he caught his pokemon

"Now it's down to one pokemon each" Ben said to himself

"Thanks for all your hard work" Alex said as he returned Lucas to his pokeball for a well earned rest, "I'm promise, nothing you did will go to waste"

"Man, that Onix is tough" he said to himself, "It's all up to you Zack" Alex reached for his pokeball, "I choose you!"

Zack appeared ready to face his opponent. Onix stared down at the small dragon pokemon.

"Zack, Sandstorm" Alex commanded

The Land Shark swung its arms around as a sandstorm began to cover the field. As the sandstorm continued to churn, Onix seemed unaffected by the veil of sand.

"Huh… why isn't it working" Alex said in shock

"A Sandstorm doesn't bother Rock, Ground, or Steel pokemon, it's not going to work against Onix like it did against the Beedrill swarm yesterday" Ben explained

"Onix, Tackle"

"Zack, Dragon Rage"

As Onix lunged at the Gible, Zack opened his mouth and fired its Dragon Rage at the Rock Snake pokemon, hitting Onix right on its chin.

"Onix, Rock Throw"

Onix slammed the ground in front it, sending rocks flying at its opponent.

"Zack, use Dig"

As the rocks came over head, the Land Shark pokemon quickly dug its way underground. Onix looked around for its opponent. After a few seconds, Zack appeared under Onix and hit it on the sixth segment of its stony body. Onix hit the ground hard.

"Dragon Rage"

"Screech"

As Onix let out another loud screech, Zack managed to fire its Dragon Rage, connecting on the third segment below Onix's head.

"Onix, Tackle"

Onix lunged through the smoke of the explosion

"Dodge it"

"Bind it"

As Zack jumped out of the way, Onix snaked its long body around and caught the Land Shark, squeezing tightly.

"Quick, use Dragon Rage!" Alex yelled urgently

As Onix held the Gible tightly, Zack opened his mouth and fired its attack, hitting Onix right under its chin. As Onix pulled back from the hit, its grip loosened enough for Zack to escape.

"Use Dig"

Zack jumped off of the Rock Snake and dug into the ground as he landed. As Onix regained its focus, Zack jumped out of the ground and hit it on the third segment of its body again. Onix stared at Zack intensely as he landed; suddenly the Rock Snake fell to the ground.

"Onix is unable to continue" Ben said in amazement

"We won…" Alex said almost in disbelief

A second later his look of shock changed to an excited smile.

"We did it, we won our first gym battle!" he jumped with excitement, laughing happily.

Zack rushed back over to his trainer

"You were just amazing, buddy" Alex said as he knelt down and patted the little dragon on the head

"Congratulations on your victory" Brock said as he returned his Onix to its pokeball

"Thanks, but you almost beat us" Alex laughed a little, "thanks for a great job Zack" he said put him back in its ball

"Not bad at all" Ben said as he walked up

"Take this, it's the proof you won at this gym" Brock said as he stretched out his hand, "it's the Boulder Badge"

Alex reached out and grabbed the gray stone shaped badge. He admired the shape and color of the badge. He smiled as he put his badge into his backpack.

"Thank you very much" he said, "that's one down seven to go" he smiled

"Good luck on the rest of your journey" Brock said as he stretched his hand out

"Thanks" Alex replied as he shook Brock's hand

The following day at the pokemon center as everyone ate their lunch, Alex got a case to keep his badges; Ben poured a handful of pokeblocks into Mimi's food before eating his lunch.

"How long are you going to stare at that badge?" Melody giggled as she looked over at her trainer. Alex laughed as he closed his case

"That was a pretty impressive battle" Ben commented

"Yeah, for a minute there I didn't think we were going to win" Alex chuckled, "Brock's a tough trainer"

"Well, he's not a gym leader for nothing" Ben said

"So where are we going next?" Alex asked as he dug into his food

"Cerulean City, but we're going to have to pass through Mt. Moon to get there first" Ben answered

"Cerulean City…"

"Mt. Moon's not too far from here, we'll head out as soon as we're finished with lunch"

"Sounds good to me"

After lunch, the friends head out towards Mt. Moon. Along the way they encountered a few trainers looking for a friendly battle, Alex was more than happy to oblige. With Melody's help, he easily defeated them. Eventually they saw a large mountain ahead of them.

"So, that's Mt. Moon" Alex said

"Yep, Cerulean City is just on the other side" Ben said as they continued

After a long hours worth of walking, they came across the mouth of a cave. As they entered the cave, a flock of bat-like creatures began to swarm overhead. Alex, Ben, and Melody all covered their heads.

"What are these things?" Alex pulled his pokedex out of his pocket

"_Zubat, the Bat Pokémon. Zubat primarily live in caves and generally travel at night time. Although blind, Zubat are able to safely navigate through the air by emitting ultrasonic sound waves from its mouth._"

"Elekid, use Thunder Shock" Ben said as he threw a pokeball

Elekid appeared and swung his arms around several times before unleashing a jolt of electricity at the Bat pokemon. The shock was just strong enough to scare the swarm of Zubat away.

"Good job Elekid" Ben said as Elekid returned to his pokeball, "well, let's get moving"

Alex nodded as they started walking through the cave. There was just enough light throughout the cave for them to see where they were going safely. As they continued, they started to see several cave pokemon. There were these crab-looking pokemon with mushrooms growing out of their backs scurrying around.

"_Paras, the Mushroom Pokémon. Mushrooms called tochukaso grow from its back and are capable of emitting powerful spores to fend off predators. These mushrooms are also used in medicines._"

There was also a tan-colored mouse like creature hiding among the stones of the cavern.

"_Sandshrew, the Mouse Pokémon. Sandshrew hates moisture and lives in holes it digs in dry places. It protects itself by curling into a ball. Sandshrew are capable of adapting to harsh, arid, dry areas and its short claws serve as its primary weapon_"

As they continued through the caverns, they started to get the feeling that they weren't alone in there. Alex could feel that something was bothering Melody

"What's up Melody?" Alex asked

"I can't escape the feeling that there's someone else down here" Melody said to him

Suddenly, a swarm of Zubat flew at them. However unlike the last one, this swarm flew straight past them. They all looked back as the Zubat disappeared into the caverns behind them.

"Another swarm of Zubat" Alex said

"They looked like they were trying to get away from something" Melody noted

"I got a bad feeling about this" Ben said

"Yeah, me too" Alex added

"Hey you kids, what are you doing here?" a voice said angrily

They turned and saw two men dressed in black outfits with a big red "R" in the center of their shirts.

"Who are you?" Alex asked

"We're from Team Rocket, now I asked what you are doing here?" one of them said as he gave them an angry look.

"What's Team Rocket?" Alex gave them a confused look

"I think I've heard of them, their a pretty secretive organization that steals pokemon" Ben said as he reached for his belt

"So you've heard of us, huh" the other grunt said

"Why don't we cut to the chase, hand over your rare pokemon and we won't hurt you"

Alex clenched his teeth and his fist as he gave them an angry look, "No way, not on your life!"

"Look kid, we can do this the easy way or the hard way" the first grunt said to them

"And we got no problem doing things the hard way" the second grunt added

"Well you're not getting me without a fight" Alex growled, "Let's go Melody"

"I'm right behind you, go Elekid" Ben said as he threw his pokeball, releasing his pokemon.

As Elekid appeared next to Melody, the two grunts reached for their own pokeballs.

"Kids never do as their told, go Ekans!" the lead grunt said

"Go, Koffing" the other said

"_Ekans, the Snake Pokémon. It sneaks through grass without making a sound and strikes unsuspecting prey from behind. Ekans is armed with a powerful poison in its fangs. Ekans favorite food is bird eggs_."

"_Koffing, the Poison Gas Pokémon .Koffing's body is filled with toxic chemicals and gases._ _If Koffing becomes agitated, it raises the toxicity of its internal gases and then jets them out from all over its body. This Pokémon may overinflate its round body, then explode violently._"

"Be careful, Poison-types are tricky" Ben said

"Let's teach these guys a lesson" Alex said

"Koffing use Tackle"

"Ekans use Bite"

"Melody use Psychic on Koffing" Alex said

"Elekid, use Thunder Punch on Ekans" Ben commanded

Koffing flew at Elekid as Melody charged her attack. Ekans lunged at Melody as Elekid's fist surged with electricity. As they drew closer towards each other, Melody unleashed a blast of psychic energy sending the Poison Gas pokemon into the cave wall. Ekans lunged and prepared to sink its fangs into Melody, but was met by Elekid's Thunder Punch. The Electric pokemon's fist slammed into the Snake pokemon's lower jaw, sending the snake's head away from the Emotion pokemon.

"Nice save" Alex said to his friend

"Thanks" Ben smiled

"Ekans, Poison Sting"

"Koffing, Will-O-Wisp"

Ekans opened its mouth and a flurry of purple needles shot forth. A blue flame appeared in front of Koffing's mouth and launched at the enemy.

"Protect" Alex and Ben commanded

Melody and Elekid both used Protect to block their opponent's attacks.

"Elekid, Quick Attack"

Elekid sped towards and slammed into Ekans

"Use Wrap"

Ekans wrapped its long body around Elekid.

"Elekid hang in there" Ben said

"Melody use Psychic and help Elekid" Alex commanded

"Koffing use Smokescreen"

As Melody prepared to launch her attack, Koffing let out a thick cloud of smoke from its body. As the smoke enveloped them, Melody lost her focus and her attack dissipated.

"Ekans, Bite"

"Elekid, lookout"

Ekans was about to sink its fangs into the trapped Electric pokemon, suddenly a bright light enveloped Elekid.

"What's happening to Elekid?" Alex looked in shock

"Elekid is starting to evolve" Ben said in amazement.

As the light intensified, they saw Elekids body growing larger. Ekans struggled to maintain its grip and was eventually forced to let go. The light stopped and revealed a new pokemon. This one was much larger than Elekid. It was yellow with black strips on it, had larger more muscular arms, a tail, and had a much larger black lightning bolt design on its chest.

"What is that?" Alex stared in amazement at this new pokemon

"_Electabuzz, the Electric Pokémon. An evolved form of_ _Elekid. It appears near power generators, and because it eats electricity it can cause blackouts. Electabuzz is capable of delivering powerful electrical attacks and is will often windmill its arms to boost the power of its punches_."

"Awesome…" he said as he continued to look in amazement

"Ekans, Bite"

Electabuzz's antenna began to crackle with electricity. Suddenly, they unleashed a powerful bolt of electricity, far stronger than Ben or Alex had seen when it was Elekid. The bolt struck Ekans with amazing force, slamming it into the cave wall.

"What power" Alex said in amazement, "was that a Thunder Shock?"

"No… that was a Thunderbolt" Ben replied, amazed at the strength of the blast

"Awesome, Electabuzz has a new move"

"Ekans, get up and use Acid"

The Snake pokemon pulled itself upright and fired a stream of acidic black sludge out of its mouth

"Dodge it, then use Thunder Punch" Ben said urgently

Electabuzz side-stepped out of the way of the Acid attack and ran towards Ekans, his fist bursting with electricity. Finally, bringing his fist directly into the Poison-type's left cheek, flinging it back several feet, crashing into its trainer.

"Koffing, use Tackle on Electabuzz"

The Poison Gas pokemon flew towards Electabuzz

"Oh no you don't, Melody use Psychic on Koffing!" Alex commanded

Melody quickly launched a blast of psychic energy at the floating Poison-type, knocking it into its trainer.

"Electabuzz, finish it with Thunderbolt"

Electabuzz's antenna began to spark violently and second later unleashed a devastating electrical blast, zapping the two Poison-types and their trainers. After a few seconds, the attack ceased and the two grunts frantically returned their pokemon and ran out of the caverns.

"They weren't so tough" Alex laughed

"Great job Electabuzz" Ben placed his hand on his shoulder

"You too Melody" Alex hugged his dear friend

"Man, everything totally changed for the better when your Elekid evolved into Electabuzz" he said to Ben

Ben laughed and patted his pokemon, suddenly something from behind made them all jump. They turned and saw a small pink pokemon. It almost looked like something out of a fairytale book.

"_Clefairy, the Fairy Pokémon. Clefairy are primarily found in quiet mountains and are not often seen by humans. Clefairy appear on nights of a full moon and will dance in the light of the moon till dawn. Some scientists believe that Clefairy came from outer space._"

"Outer space, that's really…" they looked up but Clefairy was gone, "hey where did it go?"

"It disappeared…" Ben looked around

"That's so weird…" Melody said

"Let's get moving, we're almost to the exit" Ben said

They followed Ben as they continued on, eventually they saw light ahead. Covering their eyes, they exited the cave and saw a city ahead of them.

"There it is, Cerulean City" Ben said as they gazed at the city.

"Wow, our second badge is just ahead" Alex said

"What do you say we stop at the pokemon center first for some rest, and then we head to the gym" Ben suggested

They suddenly heard a low grumbling sound. Alex laughed; it was the sound of his stomach growling.

"Ok, let's eat first" he said, "then I'll get my second badge"

Melody couldn't help but giggle. Suddenly, something caught them all by surprise. The egg Alex had been taking care of started to glow a little.

"Look at that" Melody said in surprise

"Looks like it's going to hatch soon" Ben remarked, "Let's get to the pokemon center quickly"

"Let's get moving" Alex said as they ran towards the city.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: The Tomboyish Mermaid

"Look at that" Melody said in surprise

The egg that Alex had received from the Johnson's before coming to Kanto was beginning to glow and flash with light

"Looks like it's going to hatch soon" Ben remarked, "Let's get to the pokemon center quickly"

"Let's get moving" Alex said as they ran towards the city.

As they rushed to get to the Cerulean City pokemon center, the egg Alex was given by Mr. and Mrs. Johnson began to flash and glow with light. After running for 7 minutes, they finally found the pokemon center. Rushing through the doors to the front desk where Nurse Joy was standing with a welcoming smile.

"Good Afternoon" she said

"Nurse Joy, we got an egg that is going to hatch soon" Alex said urgently

"Come this way" Joy said as she led them into another room.

After taking the case from Alex, Joy set it down and hooked up a pulse monitor to it. Carefully looking it over, Joy then turned to the owner.

"Oh my, this egg is going to hatch any minute now" she said with surprise

"So what do we do?" Alex asked in surprise

"Calm down, buddy" Ben said

"Just leave this to me" Joy smiled

After several minutes, the egg began to glow even brighter than before. Everyone looked at it.

"It's hatching" Ben said

Alex and Melody stared in awe. The light became brighter and brighter. After a few seconds, the light dissipated and a small pokemon appeared. For a moment, Alex thought it hadn't hatched all the way; it was still encased in the egg shell. Only the top was opened, revealing a light yellow pokemon with five spikes going around its head and a pair of black eyes. It also had two small fingerless hands and two small feet.

"It's adorable" Melody smiled

"It's a beautiful Togepi" Nurse Joy said joyfully

"Togepi…" Alex stared as a smile came across his face

"_Togepi, the Spike Ball Pokémon. Happiness is stored in Togepi's shell, and it shares its happiness with kind-hearted people. Togepi are joyful and childish, and often require great care from others to keep them safe. As a result, it is said Togepi will share its joy with those who take care of it and protect it from harm._" Alex's pokedex explained

"Congratulations" Ben said

Nurse Joy picked up the baby pokemon and gave it a quick look over before handing it over to Alex.

"Congratulations, it's a beautiful baby boy" she said joyously

As he gently held his newborn pokemon, a smile came across Alex's face as Togepi smiled joyfully at him.

"My names Alex, it's nice to meet you my little one" he said in a warm tone

"So, what are you going to call him" Ben asked

"I think I'll call him… Johnny" Alex replied as the Spike Ball Pokemon waved his arms and giggle happily.

"I think he likes it" Melody giggled, "It's nice to meet you Johnny" the Togepi giggled happily as Melody smiled at him

"You're probably hungry aren't you?" Alex said to his little pokemon

"Stay here, I'll get something for him to eat" Joy said as she and Chansey walked out of the room

"Let's introduce you to the rest of the group" Alex said as he placed Johnny down, "Alright everybody, come on out and say hello"

Alex released his other pokemon, as they appeared Alex grabbed Johnny and knelt now to place him on the floor in front of the other pokemon.

"Everybody, this is Johnny" he said

As Johnny waved his tiny arms happily, Lucas, Mimi, and Zack made their way up and greeted him happily. Sophia walked up and looked at him curiously. Johnny looked at her with the same curiosity. As they looked at each other, they began to move closer together. Johnny smiled and hugged Sophia; she was a bit surprised by this but quickly her expression changed as she smiled and began to rub her face against the small baby pokemon.

"Aw, isn't that cute" Ben said

"Aw, that is so sweet" Alex smiled

As the pokemon played with their new friend, Alex and Ben sat down and began to talk about what they were going to do next.

"So, what do you know about the Cerulean City gym?" Alex asked

"Water Pokémon are the gyms specialty" Ben answered him, "Misty, the gym leader, is known as the Tomboyish Mermaid and she knows more about Water-types than both of us"

"Sounds like she's a tough opponent" Alex remarked

"Don't underestimate her" Ben added

"I'll keep that in mind" Alex laughed

"Sorry to have kept you waiting" Nurse Joy reentered the room with a bowl of rice porridge and a spoon on a tray

"Thank you, Nurse Joy" Alex said as he got out of his seat

"I'll get the rest of the pokemon something" Ben said

As Ben got food for the other pokemon, Alex picked Johnny up and placed him on the table. Grabbing the bowl and spoon, Alex took the spoon in one hand, scooped out a spoonful of porridge, and gently blew on it before bringing it up to Johnny's mouth. Johnny opened his mouth and eagerly ate the porridge.

"There you go" Alex smiled, "Eat it all up, Nurse Joy and Chansey made this just for you" he said as he got another spoonful

As Alex continued to feed Johnny, Ben pulled out his an item from his bag that resembled a large PEZ dispenser with a pokeball design on top of it.

"What's that thing?" Alex asked

"It's a Pokeblock dispenser; I keep all my blocks in here" Ben answered, "I'm going to give Mimi some dry blocks"

"You know, I might want to use Mimi in this gym battle" Alex said

"Well that would make sense, considering the Cerulean gym is a gym for Water pokemon…" Ben said

"Which means the field is suited for Water-types, so Mimi should be able to do well in a battle there" Alex finished Ben's sentence

"So then who's going to be your second choice?" Ben asked

"I was thinking Melody" Alex replied, "Her Magical Leaf should help us win here"

"It's true that Water pokemon are weak against Grass moves, but you're going to need more than just Magical Leaf to beat Misty"

"Yeah, but I don't have a Grass or an Electric type pokemon"

"I think I may have a solution"

"I'm listening"

"I think I may be able to teach Melody a new move that can help you guys here"

"What would that be?" Melody asked

"Thunderbolt… Electabuzz and I can teach you guys that attack" Ben replied

"That would be great" Alex said, "Let's get started as soon as I'm done feeding Johnny"

After Johnny finished his porridge and everyone else finished eating, everyone went outside to train.

"Sophia, Lucas, Zack, I need you guys to keep an eye on Johnny while Melody and I are training ok" Alex said

The three pokemon nodded as they turned their attention to the new baby of the group.

"Ok, let's get started" Ben said as he called out his Electabuzz

"Electabuzz, let's show them how to use Thunderbolt" Ben said

Electabuzz nodded and turned as its antenna began to spark violently, a few moments later they unleashed a powerful bolt of electricity. The bolt flew and collided into a large stone outside of the pokemon center. The force from the bolt blew it to pieces.

"Dang…" Alex stared in amazement of the power of that Thunderbolt

"First things first" Ben said, "I want you to try gathering some electricity"

"I remember my mother knew this attack" Melody replied, "so I think I should be able to do this"

Melody stood still, focusing her powers, trying to gather enough electricity. After several minutes of no results, her hand began to spark with a small amount of electricity. Alex smiled as eventually the sparks became larger and more noticeable. As Melody continued, Ben set up a target for her to practice against.

"Alright, now keep focusing and try to launch that power at the target over there" he said as he stepped away from the target

Melody opened her eyes, brought her right hand up, and fired a small bolt of electricity towards the target. As it sped towards the target, it veered off and just missed, connecting with a tree behind it.

"Almost" Ben said

"Let's try it again" Alex said

"Right" Melody nodded as she closed her eyes and tried again.

After a few moments, she fired again and managed to hit the target on the outer most ring.

"A hit" Ben smiled

"You're doing great Melody" Alex commented

Melody fired several shots until she finally hit the bulls-eye on the target.

"Perfect"

"You did it Melody"

Melody turned and smiled as the sparks around her hand ceased

"Ok, try to do that again a few more times"

Melody turned to face the target and began to attack again. She fired three Thunderbolts one after another; the first two were about the size of the very first one she fired, but the third one larger both in size and in power. All three hit the bulls-eye, but the third one not only hit the bulls-eye, it destroyed the target

"Now we need to get you used to hitting a moving target" Ben turned towards the pokemon playing together, "Zack, come here"

Zack ran over and looked at Ben curiously

"Wait a minute, I'm not blasting him with a Thunderbolt" Alex said

"Relax, remember electric attacks have no effect on Ground types and Zack is a combination Dragon and Ground type" Ben said

"Oh yeah…" Alex remembered, "um… I knew that…" he said in a slightly embarrassed tone

Melody couldn't help but giggle

"Ok Zack, we need your help" Ben knelt down

The Land Shark dug its way into the ground and began popping up out of holes in the ground. As Zack kept popping up, Melody fired one Thunderbolt after another. They all connected with their target, but didn't harm him at all. Zack then began to move around underground with only his fin sticking out of the ground.

"Melody, aim for Zack's fin" Alex pointed at the moving fin

Melody took aim and launched another Thunderbolt, just missing its intended target.

"Concentrate" Ben said, "Lead the target, take aim, and then fire"

Melody nodded and looked at her target. After looking at his movements, she readied another Thunderbolt, took aim, and fired. This time she hit Zack as he was speeding around underground. Alex noticed that Melody was looking tired from the training.

"Ok guys, what do you think about taking a break?" Alex suggested

"That's probably a good idea" Ben agreed

Alex walked over to Melody and handed her a water bottle. As she drank the cool water down, Alex whistled for Zack.

"Thanks for your help little buddy" he said as he patted Zack on the head and gave him a hand full of poke-chow.

Zack eagerly opened his mouth as Alex dropped the food into his mouth. Zack happily ate it and then ran off to bask in the sun.

"You did great Melody" Alex smiled

"Thank you" she smiled back at him

"Now I know we'll beat Misty for sure" he said with confidence

"Slow down there" Ben said, "You guys just about have Thunderbolt down, but you should train a little more before you challenge Misty to a battle"

"Trust me, the last thing you want is to go into the battle and have your move fail" he added

"hmm, good point" Alex remarked

After resting for a few minutes, Alex and Melody got back to perfecting Thunderbolt. Alex set up a line of empty soda cans.

"Alright, let's try knocking these down all at once"

Alex stood back as Melody took aim, firing a bolt of electricity. After connecting and knocking down the first can, she pulled her arm right, sweeping the bolt across and knocking away the remaining cans. Ben watched as they continued practicing their new move.

"I'm impressed with how quickly they're getting this" he remarked

Electabuzz nodded as they continued training for another hour before finally stopping.

"I think we got it down" Alex said as Melody's hand ceased sparking with electricity

"Not bad you two, not bad at all" Ben said, "I'm impressed with your hard work"

"Thanks" Alex smiled as he handed Melody a water bottle

"Let's take a break at the pokemon center, then we'll go to the gym for your battle" Ben said

"Good call" Alex replied, "Alright everybody time to get going"

Sophia, Lucas, Johnny, and Zack all rushed over to their trainer. Reaching for his belt, Alex grabbed each of their pokeballs and recalled his team to their balls. Back at the pokemon center, they all took a lunch break and thirty minutes later, made their way to the Cerulean City gym.

The Cerulean gym was completely different from the Pewter gym. Pewter looked like an aged stone building, but the Cerulean gym looked like a more modern building. It was a fairly large structure with a large dome painted with vertical pink and yellow stripes, with a wave like design along the base of the dome. Alex looked up and was amazed to see what looked a large sea lion like pokemon just above the sign for the gym.

"What kind of pokemon is that?" he wondered

"It's a painting of a Dewgong" Ben answered

"Dewgong…" Alex reached for his pokedex

"_Dewgong, the Sea Lion Pokémon. Dewgong primarily live in freezing cold climates. It stores thermal heat in its white fur coat to keep its body warm. Dewgong are capable of swimming a steady eight knots even in intensely cold waters._"

"wow" he replied

"I'm sure we'll see plenty of water pokemon inside" Ben remarked

"What are we waiting for?" Alex said with excitement

As they stepped through the double doors of the gym, Alex thought they had walked into an aquarium. There was a long hallway with many glass windows, and inside were many different species of water pokemon and other aquatic life.

"Amazing…" Alex looked through the glass, seeing many pokemon he had never seen before.

"Quite an amazing assortment of pokemon" Ben remarked, "There's Goldeen, Seaking, Staryu, Starmie, a Seel, and over there is a Horsea"

"What's that pokemon?" Alex pointed at a massive shell with a small black face in the center.

"That's a Cloyster" Ben answered, "and over there is its pre-evolved form, Shellder"

Alex was about to pull out his pokedex and see what information it had on the pokemon in the aquarium but something caught his eyes. He saw a girl with red hair swimming inside the aquarium, but what really surprised him was that she had what looked like a fish tail from the waist down. As he stared at her, the girl spotted and waved at him. As he slowly brought his hand up and waved back, she swam over and touched the glass where he was standing. Ben looked over and saw the look of surprise on Alex's face.

"What are you looking at?" he asked

"I think I see a mermaid" Alex replied not taking his eyes off of her

"What the…"

Melody and Ben immediately came over to see what he was talking about.

"She's so pretty" Melody said as she gazed at the figure on the other side of the glass.

"That's not a mermaid" Ben laughed, "That's Misty, the gym leader"

She pointed to a door down the hall as she swam to the surface. Alex, Ben, and Melody proceeded through the door and found themselves at a massive pool.

"Well hello there" a voice said

Alex turned and saw the same girl from before. She wore a blue two-piece swimsuit and had her short red hair tied in a pony-tail on the left side of her head. She looked a little older than he was

"Are you Misty?" Alex asked

"Yes, I'm Misty and I'm the leader of this gym" she replied

"Then why did you look like a mermaid when we first saw you in that tank before?" he asked with a confused look on his face

"Just trying out a new swimsuit" she giggled

"Oh…" he replied

Ben and Melody couldn't help but laugh a little

"So I take it you're here to battle for a badge"

"Yes I am"

"Well, then I accept your challenge"

Misty and Alex took their places on opposite sides of the pool in the center of the room. The pool was massive and had several small platforms on the surface to stand on.

"We'll each use two pokemon and you are allowed to substitute your pokemon if you chose" Misty said, "You ready to start?"

"I'm ready when you are" Alex replied, "Mimi, I choose you"

"Go, Staryu" Misty called

As Mimi appeared, a tan colored starfish pokemon with a red gemstone in the center of a gold colored design on the center of its body appeared from Misty's pokeball.

"_Staryu, the Star Shape Pokémon. It lives primarily on the ocean floor. The gem in the center of its body is called its core and serves as its heart. If a Staryu loses any of its appendages it can grow them back with ease provided the core is still fully intact._"

"A Staryu… never battled one of those before" he said, "This is should be good"

"Staryu, Tackle" Misty commanded

Staryu flew at Mimi, spinning like a disk as it flew

"Mimi, Water Pulse" Alex commanded as Staryu came closer

As Mimi opened her mouth, a blue ball formed and was launched towards Staryu

"Dodge it, then use Water Gun"

Staryu effortlessly evaded the Water Pulse and immediately fired a stream of water at its opponent

"Dive underwater, quickly" Alex said urgently

Mimi dove underwater to evade the attack

"After it Staryu, Tackle"

As Mimi hid underwater, Staryu immediately followed her and proceeded to attack, slamming into her.

"Now follow with Bubble Beam"

"Counter with Mirror Coat"

As Staryu fired a stream of light blue bubbles from its gem, Mimi's body became enveloped in a glowing, reflective substance. As Staryu's attack hit, the bubbles were reflected back at Staryu. The reflected attack hit and sent the Star Shape pokemon out of the water

"Water Pulse" Alex commanded

"Use Water Gun" Misty replied

Staryu and Mimi fired their attacks simultaneously, causing them to collide and explode near the surface of the pool. The blast sent water flying everywhere and propelled Mimi into the air

"Gotcha" Misty smiled, "Tackle it Staryu"

Staryu immediately flew towards the Fish pokemon as it flew into the air

"Water Pulse" Alex yelled

As it drew closer, Mimi fired a Water Pulse at her attacker. The attack connected right on center of Staryu's body, the force from the blow sent it hurling towards one of the platforms still in the pool. Staryu hit the platform hard as Mimi landed back in the water

"Staryu, you ok"

Staryu got up and stood ready to continue.

"Tackle, once more"

"Mimi, Flail"

Staryu dove after Mimi, colliding with her underwater. As the Star Shape pokemon hit her, she proceeded to slap it repeatedly with her tail.

"Bubble Beam"

"Mirror Coat"

Staryu fired another stream of bubbles at Mimi as she countered and sent the attack back at it. Staryu flew back and landed on one of the platforms, its core flashing with a red light.

"Why is it flashing like that?" Alex asked

"Staryu can't continue" Misty answered

"And it looks like Mimi is out of it too" Ben pointed

Alex looked and saw Mimi on her side

"Thanks for your hard work Mimi" Alex returned her to her pokeball, "Now get some rest"

"Looks like its one-on-one now" Misty reached for her second pokeball, "You ready for round two"

"Ready when you are" Alex replied

"That what I like to hear" Misty smiled, "Go, Starmie"

Misty's new pokemon was just like Staryu, but this one was violet and looked like it had a second star on its back, making look like a ten- sided star. Also, the core of its body looked like a beautifully cut precious gemstone, like something you would see in an expensive jewelry store.

"_Starmie, the Mysterious Pokémon. Starmie is the evolved form of Staryu. Starmie's central core shines the seven colors of the rainbow. The star on its back is capable of spinning 360°. Starmie are rare in the wild. Like Staryu, if Starmie loses a piece of its body it will grow back._"

"Alright Melody, your turn" Alex smiled

"You got it" Melody leapt onto one of the platforms in the pool.

"Someone's eager to get going" Misty smiled

"Melody, Magical Leaf" Alex said

Melody unleashed a flurry of light green leaves at the Mysterious pokemon

"Starmie, counter with Swift" Misty commanded

Starmie released many yellow stars from its core gem. As the stars and leaves flew, many collide with each other causing an explosion at the center of the pool.

"Starmie, Water Gun"

"Melody, dodge it then use Psychic"

Melody leapt to another platform as Starmie fire a powerful stream of water. As she landed, Melody fired a blast of psychic energy at her opponent

"Dodge it, then use Water Pulse"

Starmie evaded Melody's blast and formed a blue ball of energy in front of its core and fired.

"Protect"

Melody quickly set her shield to block Starmie's attack

"Starmie, Tackle" Misty commanded

"Thunderbolt" Alex replied

Starmie flew at Melody as her Protect faded. As it came closer, Melody's right hand began to spark. A moment later, she fired a bolt of electricity at the incoming Mysterious pokemon.

Starmie received the attack and was sent hurtling across the battlefield, hitting the water five feet away from where Misty was standing.

"Got it" Alex said

"You'd think so wouldn't you" Misty smiled, "Starmie, Recover"

At the word, Starmie emerged from the pool and its body began to glow brightly. As the light enveloped it, all the damage Starmie had received faded away.

"No way" Alex said in shock

"Recover restores a pokemon's health and heals its wounds" Ben explained

"Oh great" Alex replied, "So how are we suppose to beat it?"

"Recover can only restore so much health" Ben answered, "You're going to need to do enough damage to finish it in one move"

"Easier said than done" Alex replied

"Starmie, Water Gun" Misty commanded

"Dodge it, then use Magical Leaf" Alex quickly replied

Melody jumped to another platform as Starmie fired its attack. As Melody landed, she launched a flurry of leaves

"Starmie, into the pool"

Starmie immediately dove underwater and the Magical Leaf simply hit the surface of the water, unable to go after their target.

"Darn it" Alex said in an annoyed tone, "It can heal itself and we can't go after it if it hides underwater"

"So what do we do?" Melody's voice entered his mind

"I don't know" he thought to himself, "The best way I can think of to beat it is to hit it with a powerful Thunderbolt attack, but that's not going to help if we can't see where it is"

"Magical Leaf isn't strong enough to win this. Thunderbolt is our best bet, but we need to get it out of the water and then hit it with an electric attack"

"Wait… water and electricity…" a thought occurred to him, "That's it…. why didn't I think of that before"

"You got an idea?"

"Starmie, Water Pulse" Misty commanded

Starmie emerged from the water and immediately fired its move at the Emotion pokemon

"Protect" Alex said urgently

Melody again protected herself from the attack

"Starmie, Tackle attack"

Starmie flew towards Melody

"Melody, use Psychic and knock Starmie back into the water"

Melody leapt into the air and launched a powerful blast of psychic energy at the Mysterious pokemon and sent it plummeting into the water of the pool

"What's he up to?" Misty thought to herself

"Now use Thunderbolt on the water" Alex commanded

Melody's hand sparked with electricity as she landed, a second later, she unleashed a large bolt of electricity upon the pool. The electricity of the attack coursed through the water, delivering a devastating shock to any in the water. After a short while, she ceased her attack and waited to see if her opponent would resurface. After a minute, Starmie floated to the surface, its gem flashing red light.

"Starmie's out of it" Ben remarked

"Melody, you did it" Alex cheered

"Thanks you Starmie" Misty said as she recalled her pokemon, "you really did great"

"Not bad" Ben said, "How did you know that would work?"

"I remembered one of my teachers mentioning that water conducts electricity a lot better than air does" Alex replied, "Can't ignore all of the stuff they teach in school"

"Well, that was creative thinking back there" Misty commented, "Here, take this Cascade badge as proof you won here at the Cerulean gym"

"Thank you Misty" Alex said as he accepted the badge

"Good luck at the other gyms" she smiled

"Thanks" he replied as he, Ben and Melody took their leave

"So where to next?" Alex turned towards Ben

"Back to Vermilion City" he replied


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Return to Vermilion City

"There it is" Ben pointed ahead

"Vermilion City" Alex said, "It feels like it's been a long time since we were last here"

After traveling a couple days, Alex, Ben, and Melody finally returned to Vermilion City.

"So, Surge is the leader here" Alex said

"Yep" Ben replied, "He is one of those power house trainers, so watch yourself"

"He's a little predictable in a fight, but don't let your guard down, he is very good" Ben added

"You mentioned on the way here that he uses Electric-type pokemon, right?" Alex turned towards Ben

"Yep" Ben answered, "if I remember correctly, he uses a Raichu as his primary battler"

"Can I ask you something?" Alex asked

"What is it?" Ben replied

"Just how do you know so much about these gyms we have been going to?"

"Oh yeah, well you see I already competed in the Kanto league"

"huh… I thought you wanted to be a breeder"

"Even breeders can compete in leagues" Ben laughed, "I wanted to try my hand and see how I would do in the Pokémon League, but after losing at the Indigo league, I decided to go back and focus my time and energy on becoming a breeder"

"I see, how far into the tournament did you make it?"

"I finished in the top eight"

"So what made you give up being a trainer?"

"Well, I lost without defeating a single one of opponent's pokemon" Ben answered, "after that defeat, I thought long and hard about what I may have done wrong in that battle. As I sat there thinking, my opponent walked up and said, "I really enjoyed our battle, but I don't think you put your heart into it""

""If you put your heart into something, there is nothing you can't do", those words stuck with me and ever since that day, I decided to go back to my dream of becoming a top breeder"

"Wow"

"Alex!" Melody ran up to her trainer

"What's wrong Melody?"

"I can't find Johnny anywhere" she said

"What!" Alex jumped out of his seat, "we have to find him"

"Calm down, panicking isn't going to help" Ben said, "lets split up and look around town, he couldn't have gotten far"

"Swablu, help us look for Johnny" Ben threw one of his pokeballs into the air as his Cotton Bird pokemon appeared and flew off to search

Alex and Melody took off in one direction, while Ben took off in another direction. They combed the whole city, searching everywhere, talking to everyone.

"Excuse me; have you seen a Togepi?" Alex frantically asked

"Sorry kid" someone replied, "but I will keep my eyes open"

"My friend lost one of his pokemon" Ben said, "Have you seen a Togepi anywhere?"

"I'm sorry I haven't"

After a half hour of searching, Alex and Melody ran into Ben

"Any luck…" Alex asked, obviously worried

"None at all…" Ben shook his head

"Where could he be?"

"We didn't check by the harbor" Melody said

Alex immediately ran in the direction of the harbor

"Hey wait up" Ben and Melody ran after him

"If anything happens to that little guy, I'll never forgive myself" Alex thought to himself

Upon arriving at the docks, Alex began to search for his lost pokemon. Ben and Melody arrived not long after he did.

"Alex, calm down and catch your breath" Ben said, "You're going to give yourself a heart attack"

"I've got to find him" Alex replied

"And we will" Melody said, "but you need to calm yourself"

Alex stared at them as he caught his breath; suddenly they heard a familiar sound in the air.

"Toge Toge piiii"

"Did you hear that?" Ben placed a hand to his ear

"Johnny…"Alex said

"It's coming from over there" Melody pointed

They ran, following the joyful cries to its source.

"Please, just let him be ok" Alex thought to himself

Around a corner on a pier that was barely six inches above the surface of the water, they saw a girl. She had short brown hair, about to her shoulder, blue eyes, and looked like she was thirteen years old. In her arms she had a Togepi

"Johnny" Alex called out

The girl and the Togepi turned and saw him. The Togepi began to wave its arms joyfully as it jumped out of the girl's arms and ran towards him.

"Johnny, thank goodness you're safe" Alex said with relief as he picked him up

"Don't run off like that again, you scared me" he said, "… but I'm just glad you're ok"

"Oh, so this Togepi belongs to you?" the girl asked

"Yeah, he's mine" he answered, "Thank you so much for finding him"

"You're welcome" she said, "My name's Ashley"

"I'm Alex, and this is Melody"

"It's nice to meet you" Melody waved her hand

"My name's Ben"

"It's nice to meet you all" Ashley replied

"Thanks again for finding Johnny" Alex said

"No problem" Ashley said, "I was wondering what a Togepi was doing here in Kanto"

"He just hatched a few days ago" Ben said

"I see"

"Alright mister, you've had your fun" Alex pulled out a pokeball,"back inside"

As Johnny disappeared into his pokeball, a light emerged from Alex's belt. As the light faded, Mimi appeared and dove into the water.

"Mimi… what are you doing outside of your pokeball?" Alex asked with confusion in his voice

"I guess she wanted to take a swim" Ben replied

"You have a Feebas too" Ashley said, "not much of a looker though"

Mimi looked down, depressed by her words

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to offend her"

Alex knelt down and placed his hand on Mimi's head

"It's not what's on the outside that important" he said, "it's the beauty on the inside that matters the most"

"And that's what I see when I look at her" he smiled at Mimi, causing her to blush slightly

"Hey you" a voice yelled

They all turned and saw two teenage boys standing ten feet away from them

"Can I help you?" Alex gave them an odd look

"We need to talk to the girl" one of them said

"I told you creeps to get lost" Ashley said

"You know these guys?" Ben asked

"They're just two jerks who won't leave me alone" she replied

"We just want to talk"

"I told you to beat it" she reached for one of her pokeballs

"Or what… you gonna beat us?"

"Wow… I guess not all jocks are entirely stupid"

"Stereotypes" Ben smirked, Alex and Melody laughed

"You're gonna pay for that… Go Hitmonchan"

"Go Hitmonlee"

"_Hitmonchan, the Punching Pokémon. Hitmonchan specializes in punch attacks. Its moves are faster than the eye. The punches this pokemon throws are strong enough to pulverize even concrete._"

"_Hitmonlee, the Kicking Pokémon. Hitmonlee can extend and retract its legs at will to kick opponents from almost any distance. First-time foes are often startled by its extensible reach._"

"Go Electabuzz" Ben said

"Espeon, I choose you" Ashley threw her pokeball into the air

As the light faded, a cat-like pokemon with lavender fur, large ears, and a forked tail appeared

"What's that?" Alex pointed his pokedex at Ashley's pokemon

"_Espeon, the Sun Pokémon and an evolved form of Eevee. It uses the fine hairs that cover its body to sense air currents and predict an opponent's movement._ _Espeon is extremely loyal to any trainer it considers to be worthy. It is said that this Pokémon developed its precognitive powers to protect its trainer from harm._"

"Hitmonchan, Comet Punch" the Punching pokemon changed and began to unleash a flurry of punches with blinding speed

"Hitmonlee, Double Kick"

"Espeon, use Psychic on Hitmonlee"

"Electabuzz, use Thunder Punch on Hitmonchan"

As Electabuzz ran towards his opponent with his fist violently sparking with electricity, Espeon's eyes began to glow as it fired a blast of psychic energy at the Kicking pokemon in front of it. The blast sent Hitmonlee skidding across the ground. While Hitmonchan and Electabuzz began to exchange punches with each other. Several punches hit Electabuzz before its Thunder Punch made contact with Hitmonchan's face.

"Hitmonchan, Fire Punch"

"Electabuzz, Protect"

As Hitmonchan prepared to jab with its fist ablaze, Electabuzz set its shield to block the attack

"Espeon, Quick Attack"

"Dodge it Hitmonlee, then use Rolling Kick"

Hitmonlee side-stepped out of Espeon's path and immediately followed with a kick to its underside.

"Now Mega Kick"

"Mimi, Water Pulse!" Alex yelled

Mimi flipped out of the water and fired her attack at Hitmonlee. As Hitmonlee prepared to finish its attack, the Water Pulse slammed into its side, sending it hurtling away from Espeon.

"I'll teach you to interfere… Hitmonchan, Mach Punch!"

Hitmonchan's glove began to glow as it sped towards a still airborne Mimi. Alex jumped and caught Mimi in his arms, but as he turned around, Hitmonchan punched him in the gut with full force, sending him off the pier and into the ocean.

"Alex!" Melody screamed as she saw her trainer disappear into the depths

Ashley and Ben turned and saw him being flung into the ocean

As Alex drifted deeper and deeper, Mimi got out of her unconscious trainer's arms and dove after him. As she tried to help him, his last words to her began to run through her mind

"_It's not what's on the outside that's important, it's the beauty on the inside that matters the most and that's what I see when I look at her_"

Meanwhile…

"Alex!" Melody called

"You're gonna regret that" Ashley growled as she turned towards the two opposing trainers

"Guys, look!" Ben pointed

Everyone turned and saw a bright light shining around the spot where Alex fell in. A few moments later, something breached the surface of the water. They saw a creature with cream colored skin, red eyes, and three black dots going down its neck. The top of its head was long, with a point at the end. Long, thin red 'eyebrows' extended from above its eyes and thicker red hair-like fins draped from the sides of its head. Its lower tail was covered with blue and pink scales, with striations of black, and four large scales, blue with red spots in the middle, overlapping on the tip of its tail in the shape of a fan.

"MMMIIIILLLOOO…" It let out a majestic call before swimming towards Ben, Ashley, and Melody

"What is that?" Ashley stared in awe at this creature

"I don't believe it…" Ben stood in shock, "it… it's a Milotic"

"It's beautiful…."

"And it's got Alex" Melody pointed to an unconscious Alex on the Milotic's back. Ben and Ashley quickly rushed over as Milotic swam up to the edge of the pier. They grabbed him and pulled him onto the pier, Melody rushed over.

"Alex, are you alright?"

Ben brought his hands together and started to push on Alex's chest.

"Come on buddy, breathe"

After a few pushes, Alex opened his eyes and turned himself over, coughing up sea water and gasping for air.

"You ok?" Melody asked

"Yeah…"Alex replied, still gasping for air, "I think so"

"This Milotic saved your life" Ashley said

"Yeah, but what's a Milotic doing here?" Ben pondered

"huh…" Alex coughed as turned towards his savior. But as the Milotic looked at him with a relieved look on its face, something about it seemed familiar to him… almost like he knew this pokemon

"Wait a minute…" Alex looked into its eyes. Milotic looked at him with warm red eyes. He noticed a slight blush across Milotic's face.

"Mimi… Mimi, is that you?"

Milotic smiled and began to rub its face against his cheek.

"It is her" Melody smiled

"If that's true, then your Feebas must have evolved" Ben remarked

"That little fish evolved into this…" Ashley said almost in disbelief as she reached for her pokedex

"_Milotic, the Tender Pokémon and the evolved form of Feebas. At the first sign of fighting, Milotic will come up from the bottom of its lake habitat and calm any hostile feelings. Milotic are rarely seen in the wild and are said to be the most beautiful of all pokemon. Milotic are peaceful Pokémon and typically try to avoid battles. It appears to dislike conflict, and will even appear before arguing humans in an attempt to calm their minds._"

"I don't believe it…" Ashley said

"Just goes to show you, pokemon are full of surprises" Ben smiled

"Thanks Mimi" Alex smiled, "You saved my life"

Mimi blushed as he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her. Mimi closed her eyes as she wrapped her "hair" around him

"Oh brother…. Get a room" one of the guys said

Alex turned and growled as he gave them an angrily annoyed look

"All this mushy stuff is making me nauseous" the other said

"Yeah, besides we're not finished wi-"

"Mimi, Ice Beam!" Alex commanded

Mimi pulled away from her trainer as a light blue ball formed in front of her mouth. Light-blue beams shot forth and froze Hitmonchan in a large block of ice

"Hitmonlee, use Hi Jump K-"

"Zap Cannon!" Ashley cut him off in mid sentence

A yellow orb of electricity formed in front of Espeon's gemstone and was launched at the Kicking pokemon. The attack connected dead center of its chest, sending Hitmonlee flying back and skidding across the ground.

"Hitmonlee, on your feet" its trainer commanded, but it was unable to move

"Nice, Zap Cannon always paralyzes its target if it hits" Ben said as sparks of electricity still surged on Hitmonlee's body

"Mimi, use Water Pulse" Alex pointed at the ground right in between the two opposing trainers

Mimi's attack exploded right in between the two trainers, causing them both to land on their backs

"Melody…" Alex called

"Electabuzz…" Ben called

"Thunderbolt!" they said in unison

Both fired their attacks and zapped the two jocks as they tried to get up. After a short while, the attacks ceased and the trainers fell to the ground again.

"I'm outta here" one of them said as he recalled his pokemon and ran off with his friend not far behind him

"Hey man, wait for me!" the other stumbled behind him

"What's wrong… don't tell me you've had enough" Ashley yelled as they ran out of sight

"Guess they've had enough" Ben smiled

"I'm just glad you're ok" Melody said as she jumped and wrapped her arms around her trainer

"It's ok Melody, I'm fine" he hugged her back, "Thanks to Mimi" he smiled

"I still can't believe that she evolved into this beautiful creature" Ashley said

"As I said earlier, pokemon are full of surprises" Ben smiled

Alex put Melody down and walked over to Mimi. He placed one hand gently on her cheek and began to gently rub his hand against her smooth skin. Mimi smiled and began to lean her head into his hand.

"Thank you, Mimi" he said as he returned her to her pokeball

"You sure you're alright?" Ashley asked

"Well, my stomach hurts and all I can taste right now is salt water" Alex replied

"Let's get back to the pokemon center and see about getting you cleaned up" Ben walked up and placed his hand on his shoulder

Back at the pokemon center, while Alex showered and changed his clothes, Ashley and Ben had their pokemon treated by Nurse Joy.

"So what was that all about back there?" Ben asked

"Oh, you mean those two guys?" Ashley replied, "Just two jerks looking for trouble"

"Well, then I guess it's a good thing we ran into each other"

"Yeah, I guess so"

"Your Espeon was pretty impressive back there"

"Thanks" Ashley smiled, "I've had her since I was a little girl"

"Sounds just like me and Melody" Alex said as he and Melody walked over

"Well you're looking a lot better" Ben said

"Feel better too" Alex said jokingly

"Melody… that's this one here right?" Ashley looked over at the Emotion pokemon next to him

"Yep, that's her" he nodded

Ashley reached for her pokedex

"_Kirlia, the Emotion Pokémon and the evolved form of Ralts. Kirlia is able to sense the feelings of its trainer, and when it becomes happy, it will start to dance. Kirlia are also able to see into the future and are known for forming bonds with their trainers._"

"Bonds…" Ashley said slightly confused

"Let's just say she and I are pretty close" Alex replied

"So you two have known each other a long time huh?"

"Yeah, we met when I was six years old" Alex looked at Melody, "Ever since we met, there's been this connection between her and me. I can tell what she's feeling and she can read my thoughts and feel my emotions"

"Wow, that's pretty incredible" Ashley replied

"Yeah"

"So where are you guys headed?"

"I've got a battle with Surge down at the gym here"

"You're in for a tough battle"

"How do you know?" Alex asked

"I just beat him" Ashley pulled out her badges and showed her Thunder Badge, "And I gotta say it wasn't easy. Surge's strategy is to try and beat his opponents with pure power"

"If he relies on power to win, maybe we can out speed him" Alex said

"So, who are you going to use?" Ben asked

"Probably Lucas or Zack" Alex replied

"Who are Lucas and Zack?" Ashley looked at him

Alex reached for his belt and grabbed two pokeballs. As they opened, Zack and Lucas appeared in of him.

"This is Lucas" he pointed at his Riolu, "and this is Zack" he pointed at his Gible

Ashley reached for her pokedex

"_Riolu, the Emanation Pokémon._ _When sad or scared, Riolu's aura becomes stronger as a way of signaling its allies._ _Riolu are playful, energetic, and loyal._"

"_Gible, the Land Shark Pokémon. Gible once lived in the tropics, and to avoid cold it lives in caves warmed by geothermal heat._"

"Where are you from?"Ashley asked

"I'm from Solaceon Town in Sinnoh" Alex answered

"Well, that explains a lot" Ashley replied, "So, what's your sixth pokemon?"

"This is Sophia" Alex let his Vulpix out of her pokeball

"Aw, so cute" Ashley walked over to the small Fox pokemon

Sophia looked up at Ashley curiously as she knelt down to pet her. She gently placed her hand on the small pokemon's head and began to gently run her fingers through Sophia's hair. She smiled as Ashley started to scratch the top of her head.

"Let's see what the pokedex has to say about this little one" Ashley said

"_Vulpix, the Fox Pokémon. At birth, Vulpix has only one tail, which splits and grows more beautiful and warmer as it gets older. Vulpix usually have a friendly, if not spoiled, temperament and are quite affectionate towards those they trust. It has a flame in its body that will never go out and as such, has the ability to breathe fire._"

"She's so adorable and her fur is so soft" Ashley commented, "I've seen a couple Vulpix back home in Johto, but I've never pet one before"

"You live in the Johto region?" Alex asked

"Yep, I'm from Goldenrod City" she answered

"Hey, what would you say to having a battle with me?" she asked

"I'd say, you're on" he replied

Outside the pokemon center, there was a small battlefield set up for trainers to practice. Ashley and Alex took their places and readied themselves for battle.

"Alright you guys, this will be a one-on-one match" Ben took his place as referee

"Got it" they replied simultaneously

"Alright Lucas, I choose you"

"Then in that case, I choose Scyther"

Out of Ashley's pokeball, a large mantis shaped pokemon with blade-like arms appeared

"What the heck is that?" Alex reached for his pokedex

"_Scyther, the Mantis Pokémon. Scyther's blade-like forearms have the power to slice through a log in a single blow and it is also gifted with incredible speed. When confronted by a trainer, they will react very aggressively to defend themselves, but when trained, Scyther can be among the most loyal Pokémon on any trainer's team and hate to give-up._"

"This isn't going to be easy for Alex. Scyther is a combination Bug/Flying type, which means Lucas' Fighting-type moves aren't going to have much effect" Ben thought to himself, "Although, Scyther's Bug-type attacks aren't going to be very effective against Lucas either"

"Alright, let's kick things off" Alex said confidently, "Lucas, Quick Attack"

"We'll use Quick Attack as well"

Both pokemon collided, but Lucas was the one sent flying. The Riolu landed on his feet and stood ready to have another go

"It's pretty clear you've done a good job raising this one" Ashley said, "but we have the advantage by type" she smiled

"Battles aren't just about type" Alex said, "It's about the trust between a pokemon and its trainer"

With those words, a bright light engulfed the Emanation pokemon

"Lucas…" Alex looked in awe

"It's evolving…" Ben said with amazement

As the light faded, a new pokemon appeared before them. It was much taller than Riolu with three spikes on its body. One on the upper-side of each of its wrists and one on the center of its chest. Its torso was also colored with yellow fur and its thighs are in the shape of what looked like blue shorts.

"A Lucario…" Alex said with surprise and amazement

"_Lucario, the Aura Pokémon and the evolved form of Riolu. Lucario are sensitive to a type of energy called Aura. By studying these waves of energy, Lucario are able to predict the movements and thoughts of their opponents. Lucario are also able to understand human speech; some people say that they can even speak it. Lucario are considered to be prideful creatures and are extremely loyal to their trainers. Lucario also have a natural sense of justice._"

"Awesome…" Alex smiled

"Congradulations on your Riolu evolving" Ashley said, "but remember we're still in the middle of a battle"

"How could I forget?"

"Then let's get back to it… Scyther, Slash attack"

Before Alex could give him a command, Lucas brought his paws together and as he spread them apart, a light green bone of energy appeared. As Scyther prepared to strike, Lucas swung the bone and blocked the attack. Scyther struck again as Lucas parried the attacks. After four strikes, the bone disappeared and Lucas back-flipped away from the Mantis pokemon.

"That was Bone Rush" Ben said

"Sweet, we got a new move" Alex smiled

"Too bad it won't work on Scyther" Ashley replied

"She's right, Ground-type moves don't work against Flying-type pokemon" Ben said

"Darn it, are you serious?" Alex said in disbelief

"Unfortunately yes" Ben nodded

"Scyther, Quick Attack" Ashley commanded

"Lucas, Force Palm" Alex responded

"Double Team, let's go!"

Just before their attacks collided, Scyther disappeared and split into multiple copies of itself around the Aura pokemon

"What did the pokedex say?" Alex thought, "Oh yeah, Lucas try to sense Scyther's aura" he yelled

Lucas closed his eyes and began to focus its aura. He could see the auras of everyone around him, as he focused he could see which were the illusions and could see the real one. He didn't know why, but Alex could feel that Lucas had located the real one.

"Alright, now use Quick Attack"

Lucas speed forth and slammed into the Mantis pokemon as the copies disappeared

"How did you know which was the real one" Ashley said with surprise

"That's the power of Aura" Alex smiled

"Scyther, Slash"

"Lucas, Quick Attack"

Scyther slashed Lucas, sending him back several feet

"Aerial Ace"

Scyther flew at the Lucario as white streaks came off it. As Lucas got to his feet, Scyther slammed into him at high speed.

"Lucas is unable to continue; therefore the victory goes to Scyther" Ben said

"You ok buddy?" Alex ran to his Lucario

Lucas looked up at his trainer. Alex could see that Lucas was upset about this loss.

"Don't feel bad buddy, you did great" he smiled, "Now come on, cheer up. I'm gonna need you when we face Surge"

Back at the pokemon center…

"Lucas looks a little upset" Melody said as she got Alex's attention

"I think that battle injured his pride" Alex said

As Lucas sat off by himself with his head lowered, something from behind made him jump a little. It was Sophia. She walked around in front of him and looked up at him.

"Vul Vul Vulpix"

"What's she saying to him?" Alex asked

"I believe in you, Lucas" Melody translated for him

"Sophia…" he smiled as his Vulpix comforted her friend, jumping into Lucas' lap and rubbing her face against him

"Lucario" Lucas said as he smiled at his childhood friend

"Thank you" Melody translated

Alex walked up to his two pokemon, knelt down and smiled at them.

"Thanks Sophia" he placed his hand on her head, "You ready to kick some butt, Lucas?" Alex looked at his Lucario

Lucas smiled and nodded at his trainer.

"Let's go get him"

Alex, Ben, Melody and Ashley all made their way to the Vermilion City gym, which looked like a large warehouse with lightning bolts painted on it. Inside was a light room with a battle arena and a very large man. He was unbelievably tall, very muscular and he wore a military looking outfit. He also had spiky blond hair.

"Let me guess, you're Lt. Surge…" Alex said

"Don't tell me you're here to challenge me for a badge, pipsqueak" he replied

"Actually… yes I am and my name's not pipsqueak, it's Alex"

"Oh brother, this shouldn't take too long" Surge scoffed

Both of them took their places on the battlefield as one of Surge's attendants took their place as a referee.

"This will be a one-on-one battle between the gym leader, Lt. Surge and the challenger, Alex" the referee announced

"Let's go, Raichu" Surge released his pokemon

"_Raichu, the Mouse Pokémon and the evolved form of Pikachu. Its tail unleashes electricity into the ground. When the charge in its cheeks have reached full charge, its ears are raised._"

"Go, Lucas"

"Let's end this quickly Raichu" Surge cracked a smile

"Don't think this is going to be easy" Alex said

"Let the battle begin" the referee started the battle

"Raichu, Thunderbolt"

Raichu's cheeks started to spark violently, and launched a massive bolt of electricity towards it opponent

"Lucas, dodge it and use Quick Attack"

The Aura pokemon leapt out of the bolt's path and instantly sped towards its opponent, slamming into it hard

"Iron Tail"

Raichu's long tail began to glow white

"Use Bone Rush"

As Raichu whipped its tail at Lucas, he formed his move and used the bone as a staff to defend against the attack

"Volt Tackle" Surge commanded

Raichu's body became engulfed with electrical energy as it charged towards the Aura pokemon

"Dodge it quick"

Raichu collided into Lucas with full force before he could move out of the way. The force from the attack sent Lucas straight into one of the walls of the gym

"Thunderbolt"

Raichu immediately followed up with a blast of electricity, causing further damage to its opponent

"Lucas, you alright?"

"Let's finish this, Raichu Focus Punch!"

Raichu's right hand began to glow bright blue

"I think this is it…" Ben said, "even though Lucario is a Fighting-type, it has Steel-type characteristics, which means that Fighting-type moves are really effective and Focus Punch is as strong as they come"

"Guess Raichu was too much for his Lucario to handle" Ashley shook her head

"Come on buddy, don't give up" Alex tried to boost his confidence, "I know you can do this"

"Lucas, hang in there" Melody yelled

Lucas got to his feet and brought his hands together in front of him. A blue ball of energy began to form in the center of his hands

"What's that pokemon doing?" Surge stared at the Lucario

"Ben, what is that?" Ashley asked

"Are we seeing things… or is that Aura Sphere?" Ben said in shock

"I don't believe it…" Alex stared at the ball of energy, "Lucas can use Aura Sphere now?"

Lucas cracked a smile

"Like that's gonna help" Surge said, "Raichu, finish it with Focus Punch"

"Lucas, Aura Sphere!" Alex yelled

As Raichu ran at Lucas, the Aura pokemon threw the sphere at the incoming Mouse pokemon, hitting it in the center of its chest. Raichu flew back and hit the ground several feet back.

"Nice shot" Alex cheered

"Raichu, Iron Tail"

"Bone Rush"

Raichu whipped its tail at Lucas again, but the Lucario dodged the incoming attack and immediately followed with an attack of his own, scoring four hits before the bone disappeared

"Thunderbolt"

"Quick Attack, then go into Force Palm"

Using the speed from its move to his advantage, Lucas nimbly dashed past Raichu's electric attack and thrust his paw into the Mouse pokemon's chest, unleashing a powerful blast of energy sending his opponent flying backwards

"Volt Tackle!" Surge was obviously getting annoyed with his opponent

Raichu immediately charged, its body engulfed with electricity once again

"Aura Sphere"

The Aura pokemon launched his attack straight into the incoming Raichu's path. The two met, Raichu took the Aura Sphere in the face, causing it to lose its attack and tumble across the ground

"Focus Punch"

Raichu's fist started to glow light-blue again

"Quick Attack"

Before Raichu could finish preparing its attack, Lucas slammed into it at high speed

"Finish it with Bone Rush" Alex commanded

Lucas immediately formed the bone and attacked, making five clean hits to Raichu. The last one that hit the Mouse pokemon sent it hurtling towards its trainer and hitting the ground hard.

"Raichu is unable to battle, Lucario wins. Therefore, the winner of this battle is the challenger, Alex" the referee announced

"You did it!" Alex cheered as he ran to his friend

"He did it…" Ashley said almost in disbelief "…he actually won…"

"You were unbelievable, pal" Alex hugged Lucas

Lucas looked at his trainer and smiled

"He really has a lot of faith in his pokemon… doesn't he?" Ashley said in amazement

"The trust between this kid and his pokemon is truly something to behold" Ben smiled

Ashley couldn't help but smile as well

Alex turned as Surge walked towards him

"Here…" Surge stretched out his hand; "you earned this Thunder badge" he smiled

"Thanks" Alex smiled as he accepted his prize

Ben, Alex, Ashley, and Melody headed back towards the pokemon center. Melody giggled as Alex wouldn't stop staring at his new badge

"How long are you planning on staring at that?" Ashley looked over at him

"Give him a break…" Ben laughed, "That was a tough battle"

"You can say that again" Alex nodded, "so Ben, what's our next stop?"

"There is a gym over in Celadon City" Ben replied, "You want to try your luck there?"

"You read my mind" he smiled

"So Ashley, where are you heading next?" Ben asked

"I'm actually headed for Celadon City too" Ashley answered

"I've got an idea" Alex said "…why don't you come with us?"

"Travel with you guys?" she was a bit surprised by his proposal

"If you'd like to, of course" Ben replied

Ashley thought about it for a minute

"Sure… I'd love to" she answered


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Celadon City

Summary: The group heads towards Celadon City for their next challenge, but find out that the leader is out… Ashley suggests they check out the town

"Sophia, Flamethrower" Alex commanded

Sophia opened her mouth and fired a stream of flames towards her opponent

"Growlithe, counter with your Flamethrower" Ashley responded

As Sophia's flames flew towards the Puppy pokemon, it opened its mouth and launched an attack of its own. The attacks collided and embers flew off in all directions.

"Good job, Sophia" Alex smiled as he knelt down and picked her up

"You too, Growlithe" Ashley smiled as she knelt down and began to pet her pokemon

"Looks like you guys have that move just about down" Ben said as he finished cooking a light lunch for everyone

As they sat down and dug into their food, Alex helped Ben get the pokemon their food.

"Hey Ashley" Alex said

"Yeah?" Ashley turned towards Alex

"I've been wanting to ask you, what's Johto like?"

"It's a very beautiful place" Ashley smiled

"Kanto and Johto are actually apart of the same land mass" Ben said, "A large range of mountains separates the two regions"

"Yeah, the two have a lot in common… but Johto is my home and I love it"

"I feel the same way about my home back in Sinnoh" Alex smiled, "You said you were from Goldenrod City, what's that like?"

"Goldenrod is a very large city and very busy too" Ashley looked up towards the sky, "But it's a very great place to live and the people there are very friendly"

"There's also a large radio tower that sends to all parts of Johto, and they play some of my favorite songs" she smiled

"That's awesome" Alex said

"So what's your hometown like?" Ashley asked as she looked over at Alex

"Solaceon Town isn't like Goldenrod City; it's a quiet little town that sits between Hearthome City and Veilstone City" Alex said as he laid back into the grass, "It's one of those places where everyone knows everyone else and people are never too busy to say 'hello'. There are only about a dozen or so houses there and there's nothing really big either. But there is this one hill that overlooks the whole town… I would always go up there to watch the sun set and look at the stars at night" he smiled, "I love that hill, it's my favorite spot in the whole town"

"Sounds like quite the place to grow up" Ben smiled

"Yeah, it seems like a really great place to live" Ashley added

Alex nodded and looked up towards the sky, "The sky is so high and the air is so pure… it feels like time flows by as slowly as the clouds in the sky" he smiled, "I love it there"

"Me too" Melody said as she walked up next to him

Alex smiled and placed his hand on her head. At that moment, Ashley felt something brush up against her leg, she looked down to see her Espeon.

"Hey there" she said as she reached down to pet her pokemon

"So how did you meet your Espeon?" Ben asked

"I met her as an Eevee when I was seven. I found her in a box in an aisle, it was raining really hard and I just couldn't leave her there. So I took her home with me…" Ashley began to scratch behind her ears, "I had to beg my parents to let me keep her, but eventually they said I could take care of her and we've been friends ever since"

"Wow, that's awesome" Alex said with a smile

"So how exactly did you and Melody meet?" Ashley asked as she turned to face him

"Back when I was six, I went to visit my uncle and aunt in Hoenn. My uncle and I went for a walk and when he stopped to take a tinkle, I thought I heard a voice in my head. For a second I thought I was hearing things, but then I heard it again. I followed the voice and found Melody in a clearing next to a lake. She was hurt pretty bad, so I tried to help by taking her to the pokemon center, but we got attacked by a Poochyena. It bit my arm but I managed to chase it away"

"How did you do that?" Ben asked

"I kinda hit it in the head with a rock a couple times" Alex replied

"Well, that'll about do it" Ashley laughed

"We could see the town ahead, when I heard this loud angry bark behind me. It was a Mightyena and a Poochyena… the same one from before, only this time it brought its mom with it. I was so scared I couldn't even think straight, especially when she started firing Dark Pulses at us. I somehow managed to avoid them, but then she gave me this death look and charged right at us. We would have been dead if my uncle hadn't shown up with his Infernape and Lopunny. Then the father Mightyena showed up and started to fight my uncle, but then the mother fired another Dark Pulse at me. Before I could even react, Melody jumped in front of me and used Protect to block the attack"

"While my uncle dealt with the Mightyena, I ran into Officer Jenny. She gave us a lift to the pokemon center and while Nurse Joy treated Melody, Jenny took care of my arm and a few scratches. I stayed at the center, waiting to see if Melody was going to be alright or not. Eventually, my uncle and my parents showed up, but even then I refused to leave. Joy allowed us to stay the night, but that night I had perhaps the scariest nightmare I've ever had. I woke up pretty freaked out; I'd never had a nightmare as intense as that one. Suddenly, I heard someone crying. It was the same voice I heard in the forest, I followed it and found Melody crying. The adults showed up wondering what was going on, and then a man named John Harrison appeared. I told everyone what I had seen in my nightmare and about the voice I had been hearing. John explained that when Melody and I met, a bond was created between her mind and mine and that somehow through that connection I was given a glimpse into her memories"

"So you're saying the dream you had was really a memory?" Ben asked

Alex nodded and sat up, "That was how I found out that she was just like me…"

"Just like you… what are you talking about?" Ashley asked in surprise

"What exactly did you see in the dream?" Ben asked

"I saw a Gardevoir give her life to save her daughter from a Seviper" Both Alex and Melody lowered their heads

"But I'm still confused, how does that make-" Ashley was cut off by Ben

"Wait a minute, are you saying what I think you're saying?"

Alex again nodded his head, "A month before all this happened, I lost someone I loved… she sacrificed herself to save me from a Seviper"

"I'm sorry, who was she?" Ashley took her hand off of Espeon's head

"Her name was Diana… she and I were like brother and sister" a tear slid down his cheek as Melody wrapped her arms around him to try and comfort him

"Thanks Melody" he said as she whipped the tear away

"I'm so sorry" Ben said

"While my parents debated about what to do next, Melody and I stepped outside. She told me her name and I promised that I would take care of her, no matter what. Then when my parents came back out and said we were going back to my uncle's house, I told them flat out that I wasn't leaving without her. After a few minutes, they said that she could come home with us… and we've been together ever since" Alex finished his story

"That's an amazing story" Ashley said

Ben nodded. Alex sighed and laid back into the grass again, Melody sat next to him. After a few minutes, Melody's voice entered his mind,

"Are you alright?" she asked

"I'm ok, Melody" he replied in his mind

"But you're not… I can sense what you're feeling, remember?" she could sense a sadness lingering around him

"It's nothing Melody; I just don't like talking about what happened back then… I just miss her"

"I know how you feel, I miss my mother" she placed a hand on him, "but you don't have to keep these feelings bottled up inside, you have friends here to help you… and I'm always here for you"

"Melody…" she smiled at him, "Thanks for caring, Melody" he smiled back at her

"We should probably get going soon" Ashley said

"Yeah, Celadon City isn't too far from here" Ben added as he finished packing his bag

Alex and Melody both got to their feet and prepared to head out. After about an hour long walk, the group finally arrived at their destination. Celadon was filled with many large skyscrapers and plenty of people too. Alex wasted no time in locating the gym, but much to his great disappointment, the sign on the gym said it was closed

"It's closed!" Alex said in surprise, "Oh come on, how can the gym be closed…"

"Look, there's a note" Ben pointed to a paper attached to the door

Ashley read the note out loud, "It says, 'I apologies for the inconvenience, but I have to run a few errands and will return as soon as I can… Sincerely, Erika'"

"Great, so what do we do now?" Alex asked in disappointment

"Well, we could check out the city while we wait for Erika to get back" Ashley suggested

"If I remember correctly, there's a massive department store and a game corner we could check out" Ben said

"Alright, we may as well" Alex said, Melody agreed

Ben led them to a massive skyscraper, "Welcome to the Celadon Department Store" he said

"Dang…" Alex stared at the sheer height of the building

"This is a department store…" Ashley said in surprise

"Not sure they made it big enough…" Alex said with a slight sarcasm in his words

"Come on, wait till you see the inside" Ben said as they walked through the double doors, "This is probably the single largest store in all of Kanto and they sell just about everything here… from clothes, toys, medicine, pokeballs, mail, evolution stones, trainer items… you name it, you'll most likely find it here"

Alex didn't know what else to say other than, "wow…"

They stepped through the double doors and headed straight for the elevator. Each floor they visited sold so many different items. They spent several hours going to each floor and looking through their selections.

"This floor specializes in selling evolution stones" Ben said as they exited the elevator

"I have been meaning to ask, what exactly is an evolution stone?" Alex asked

"It's a stone that gives off a special type of radiation" Ben explained, "certain pokemon are affected by this radiation and it can cause them to evolve to the next stage"

"Wow, so what kind of stones are there?"

"There are nine different evolution stones: fire, water, electric, leaf, moon, sun, dawn, shiny, and dusk… but there is another type called an Everstone, this one can actually prevent pokemon from evolving ever"

"Wow"

"There are only a handful of pokemon species that require a stone to evolve… and your Vulpix is one of them"

"Sophia?" Alex said with surprise

"Yep" Ben nodded, "Vulpix evolve with the help of a Fire Stone"

"The same is true for my Growlithe and Staryu" Ashley said, "Both of us might want to see about getting some stones while we're here"

"Yeah, I think I just might do that" Alex liked the idea, "I want to help Sophia get stronger and this just might help her"

"Excuse me, could I get a Fire Stone, please?" he asked the lady behind the counter

"Certainly young man" she smiled and handed him the stone

"Thank you very much" he said as he paid for the stone

"Your quite welcome, please come again" she said as he left

Alex gazed at the stone. It was orange with a light fire shape in the center, but what he liked about it was the warmth he could feel coming off of it. Ashley walked up to him with two stones in her hand, a Fire Stone and a blue one that had an almost aquatic look about it.

"Is that a Water Stone?" he asked

"Yep, Staryu needs it to evolve into Starmie" Ashley replied

"I remember Misty had a Staryu and a Starmie when I battled her back at Cerulean City"

"I caught mine before I met you guys… come to think of it; I had just caught it when your little Johnny walked right up to me"

"Seriously…" Alex laughed

"Yep" Ashley laughed, "just out of nowhere, this little Togepi walked right up to me, waving its little arms happily"

"Yeah, thanks again for finding him"

"Actually, I think he found me"

They all laughed

"Come on guys, there is one more floor we need to see" Ben said as he pointed towards the elevator

"And what floor would that be?" Ashley asked

"The roof" Ben said as he pushed the button to close the doors

After a minute, the doors reopened at the very top of the building. They exited the elevator and looked out over the edge of the rail

"Wow, you can see the whole city from up here" Ashley was clearly enjoying the view

Alex noticed a few binoculars set up along the edge of the rail. He manned one of them and looked through them, he could see just about everything with them.

"Hey, I can see a couple trainers having a battle down there" he shouted, "one of them is using Flamethrower and the other is using Psybeam"

"Who's battling?" Ben asked

"Looks like a Charmander and a Drowzee… oh and Charmander just used Fire Spin"

"Well someone's enjoying himself" Ashley and Melody giggled

"Drowzee just used Shadow Ball and… oh, Charmander just won with a Flamethrower to the face, nice one"

"Hey Alex, let's use the stones on our pokemon" Ashley suggested

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot" Alex pulled the Fire Stone out of his pocket, "Alright, come on out" Sophia appeared out of her pokeball

"You too" Ashley's Growlithe and Staryu appeared from their pokeballs as well

"Ok Sophia, are you ready to evolve?" Alex knelt down and placed his hand on top of her head

She looked up at him, smiled, and nodded her head. Alex slowly brought the stone down and touched the top of her head with it. Instantly, she began to glow brightly as a light enveloped her. Alex smiled as he saw her evolve, as the light faded, a new pokemon stood before him. Sophia had changed; her brown and red fur was now a beautiful golden white color, her once brown eyes were now gleaming bright red, her little curled hair on top of her head was now a fluffy crest. She also now had nine beautiful tails, each one tipped with orange fur.

"Sophia" Alex smiled as he hugged the Fox pokemon, she nuzzled into him in an effort to return the hug. He could feel the softness of her fur

"She's a Ninetales now" Ben said

"She's beautiful" Ashley reached for her pokedex

"_Ninetales, the Fox Pokémon and the evolved form of Vulpix. Ninetales are extremely intelligent and are known to live for a thousand years. Ninetales possess mystical powers, it is said that grabbing one of its tails will result in a one thousand year curse. Ninetales are said to have some psychic characteristics and are also able to swim, a trait not generally seen among Fire-type Pokémon_"

"Sophia, let's get stronger together" Alex smiled at her

Sophia nodded and licked his cheek. Alex patted and placed a very light kiss on top of her head. Ashley walked over to her pokemon and used the stones on them as well. As the light faded, her pokemon appeared in their evolved forms. Alex reached for his pokedex, he had already seen Starmie before but he was familiar with Growlithe's evolved form.

"_Arcanine, the Legendary Pokémon and the evolved form of Growlithe. Arcanine are extremely loyal towards their trainers. Arcanine are prized pokemon, admired due to many people thinking of it as beautiful and regal. Known for bravery and fierce loyalty, Arcanine are also able to spit fire and run at extreme speeds_"

Ashley began to pet Arcanine's head and then slowly moved to scratching the back of his ears. As she continued to move across to his back, he began to lean into her hand, which eventually caused him to fall over on his side. Ashley laughed and began to work on his belly. Arcanine turned completely over, making her job easier.

"That's a good boy" she smiled, "Who has a soft belly?" she said teasingly

As she began to move more quickly, he began to kick one of his legs. The faster her hands moved, the faster he kicked. After a few minutes, she stopped and Arcanine flipped himself over. He decided to return the favor by licking her face. Ashley giggled as her face got a tongue bath. After a short while he stopped, Ashley wiped her face and patted his head.

"Good boy" she smiled

"I take it you've had him for a long time" Ben said

"I've raised him since he was a little baby puppy" Ashley answered, "He's actually my second pokemon"

"That's the same with me and Sophia" Alex said

"Really"

"Yeah"

"So, you guys ready to check out the game corner?" Ben asked

"Sure" Ashley and Alex said simultaneously

"Oh, hold on" Alex stopped, "I want to stop by the pokemon center before we go there"

"How come?" Ashley asked

"Well, I kinda want to call my house and see how everyone is doing" he said, "My parents are probably wondering how I'm doing too"

"Alright" Ben said as they headed back towards the pokemon center

Once they reached the center, Alex headed straight for the video phones and dialed his house. After it rang for a few seconds, Scott appeared on the screen

"Hello…" he said

"Hey dad, it's Alex"

"Hey buddy" Scott said with delight in his voice, "Hey Kris, it's our son"

"Coming" Kris rushed over

"Hi sweetie, how are you?" she said with a smile

"I'm doing great" Alex replied

"Who is it mom?" a voice in the background said

"It's your big brother" Kris replied

At those words, Andrew and Emily rushed over to the phone

"Hi Alex" Andrew waved at the screen

"Hi big brother" Emily did the same

"Hey guys, what's up?" Alex smiled

"What's Kanto like?" Scott asked

"Exciting" Alex replied

"So where are you right now?" Kris asked

"I'm at the pokemon center in Celadon City"

"So how many badges do you have?" Andrew asked

"Right now I have three badges"

"Can we see them?" Emily asked

Alex grabbed his badge case, opened it, and held it up to the screen for them to see

"Wow, so those are real gym badges" Andrew gazed at them with excitement

"Yep, I got the Boulder badge, the Cascade badge, and the Thunder badge" Alex pointed to them as he said their names, "and they were tough to beat"

"Well they don't just let anyone become a gym leader, you know" Scott smiled

"Yeah, but that's three down and only five more to go" Alex said with confidence

Suddenly, Alex noticed an Abra and an Eevee in the background

"Who are those two?" he asked

"What two?" Kris looked at him oddly

"The Abra and the Eevee" Alex pointed behind them

They turned and saw the two pokemon

"You remember those eggs that your sister and brother got the day you left for Kanto?" Scott turned back to face his oldest son

"Yeah…"

"The Abra came out of Andrew's egg and the Eevee came out of Emily's"

"Really… cool"

"By the way, who are those two standing behind you?" Kris asked

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot…" Alex turned around and saw Ashley and Ben standing right behind him, "These are my friends, Ben and Ashley"

"Hello there" Scott greeted them

"It's nice to meet you all" Ashley smiled

"Hello" Ben waved his hand

"Nice to meet you both" Kris smiled, "Are all three of you traveling together?"

"Yep" Alex nodded, "and Ben is one heck of a cook"

"Good luck on your travels all of you" Scott waved

"Take care of yourselves everyone" Kris said

"Bye guys, see ya later" Alex said as he hung up the phone

As they turned to leave, a girl wearing a yellow and red kimono walked by. Not paying attention, Alex stepped out and the two collided. They both fell backwards and hit the ground

"Ow, geez" Alex picked himself up,

"Ow, that hurt" the girl said

"huh, oh I'm so sorry" Alex helped her up, "Sorry, I wasn't paying attention"

"It's alright" she said as she fixed her black hair and her red hair band

"You really should be more careful" Melody said as she walked up to him

"It's alright, no harm done" the girl said

"Sorry about that, my name's Alex"

"I'm Erika; it's nice to meet you" she smiled

"Wait… Erika the gym leader?"

She nodded her head

"Perfect, we'd like to challenge you to a battle"

"That's right" Ashley walked up next to him

"Very well, but I can only battle one of you at a time" Erika replied

"I know how to settle this" Ben walked up with a coin

"Alright you guys, call it" Ben readied to flip

"I call Heads" Ashley said

"Then I call Tails" Alex said

With that, Ben flipped the coin into the air. Ashley and Alex stared at it with anticipation as it fell to the ground. The coin bounced as it hit the ground and spin for a few seconds until it finally fell over.

"And its heads, which means, Ashley gets the first battle" Ben picked up his coin

"Yes!" Ashley smiled

"Aw man" Alex frowned

"Sorry, better luck next time" Ben said


	8. Chapter 8

Summary: Trainers learn early on that gym leaders don't part with their gym badges so easily and Erika is no exception. Alex lost the coin toss and has to wait his turn as Ashley takes her place on the battlefield. And she's more than eager to show the boys just what she can do

"And its heads, which means, Ashley gets the first battle" Ben picked up his coin

"Yes!" Ashley smiled

"Aw man" Alex frowned

"Sorry, better luck next time" Ben said

"Then it's decided, Ashley will be the first challenger" Erika smiled, "Please follow me"

Erika led them to her gym, which was a large building with four entrances and 6 large red pedals that formed the roof, resembling the top of a Vileplume. As they entered the building, it felt more like they were entering a greenhouse. There were so many different types of trees, flowers, and other plant life all around them

"This place is beautiful" Ashley smiled

"I'll say" Ben agreed, Alex and Melody simply looked around and smiled as they took in the beauty around them

"Thank you" Erika smiled, "I just love plants and flowers"

"Welcome back, my lady" a female voice said

They looked forward to see several girls, two in maid outfits

"Welcome back, Lady Erika" another of the girls said as they all gave a slight bow

"Hello" Erika greeted them with a smile

"Is there anything we can get for you?"

"I have challengers, would you please make sure the battlefield is ready?"

"Of course, my lady"

"Lady Erika?" Alex wore a look of confusion

"They must have a lot of respect for her" Ben leaned in behind Alex

"I guess so" Ashley said

Suddenly, a light appeared from Ashley's waist and a small green pokemon with two red flowers on its head and a dress made of green and yellow leaves appeared.

"Bellossom" it said happily as it looked around at the flowers and plant of the greenhouse

"What's that?" Alex asked, reaching for his pokedex

"_Bellossom, the Flower Pokémon and an evolved form of Gloom. When these Pokémon move, their delicate petals rub together, creating a pleasant sound. They are also known for their unique acrobatic dancing abilities. Bellossom are often seen dancing and chanting, resembling cheerleaders, although they're usually not actually cheering for anyone. In particular, Bellossom dances when cloudy weather persists, or when the heavy rainfall season ends and it is drawn out by the warm sunlight._"

"Bellossom, what are you doing?" Ashley asked in surprise

The Flower pokemon wandered towards a patch of beautiful red and yellow flower, admiring the color and aroma. Erika smiled and giggled

"We care for so many different types of plants and flower here, this place is perfect for Grass-type pokemon like your Bellossom" Erika said as Bellossom began to dance happily

"I'm sorry, she really loves flowers" Ashley said in a slightly embarrassed tone

"It's alright" Erika smiled, "actually I'm glad to see that she's enjoying herself"

"I'll keep an eye on her while you have your battle, my lady" one of Erika's attendants approached

"Thank you" Ashley said

They eventually arrived at a clearing, where a large battlefield was set up. Several of Erika's attendants were already there, one acting as the referee. As Ashley and Erika took their places on the field and Alex, Melody, and Ben took a seat on the side lines, the rules of the battle were announced,

"This will be a battle between the gym leader, Erika and the challenger, Ashley. Both sides will have the use of three pokemon and the battle will be over when all of one side's pokemon are unable to continue. In addition, only the challenger will be allowed to switch pokemon. Are you ready?"

Both sides nodded and grabbed a pokeball

"Then choose your pokemon"

"Victreebel, let's go" Erika called out her pokemon

Out of Erika's pokeball appeared a large plant like pokemon with two giant leaves on the sides of its long cylindrical body, a leaf on top of a mouth with teeth at the top of its body, and a long brown vine growing out of the top of it

"What the heck?" Alex reached for his pokedex

"_Victreebel, the Flycatcher Pokémon and the evolved form of Weepinbell. Victreebel can be found in small groups and are highly territorial. At the depths of the most dangerous jungles Victreebel live in huge colonies, and few Pokémon enter their territory and live to tell the tale. Victreebel horde food, usually small birds and rodents, and collect Leaf Stones to perform evolution rituals at night to help Weepinbell become more Victreebel. It uses an incredibly sweet-smelling honey to attract bugs, and sometimes larger prey, ranging from small rodents to creatures almost as large as themselves. The prey is then swallowed whole and is slowly digested by powerful acids strong enough to melt steel_"

"Never seen one of those before" Alex said as he closed his pokedex and placed it in his lap

"Don't let its looks fool you" Ben said, "Those things are actually pretty tough"

Suddenly, a light erupted from Alex's belt as Johnny appeared in front of him

"Johnny, what are you doing?" Alex asked

"I think the little guy wants to watch" Ben replied

Johnny nodded and waved his little arms happily. Alex smiled and picked him up

"Well, alright" Alex placed Johnny in his lap, "I do want to get him used to battles so I guess this would be good for him"

"Alright Pidgoet, let's do this" Ashley threw her pokeball

Out of the light, a large bird appeared. Brown feathers covered the top, while cream colored feathers covered its underside. A crest of red and yellow stretched along its back

"Wow, it's beautiful" Ben remarked

"Whoa, Pidgeot?" Alex pointed his pokedex at it

"_Pidgeot, the Bird Pokémon and the evolved form of Pidgeotto. Pidgeot is a powerful flier, capable of creating whirlwinds strong enough to bend trees. At maximum velocity it can reach speeds of Mach 2 if it accelerates for long enough, which is incredibly rare. It has keen eyes that allow it to see Magikarp from a distance of 3300 feet in the air._ _Pidgeot may also spread its wings widely to intimidate enemies._"

"If we're going just by type, Ashley's Pidgeot has the advantage over Victreebel" Ben looked to Alex

"This is gonna be good" Alex smiled as he closed his pokedex

"Let the battle begin!" the referee announced

"Pidgeot, Quick Attack" Ashley commanded

"Victreebel, power up with Swords Dance" Erika replied

Victreebel's leaves began to glow with a purple tint as it commenced with an odd dance as Pidgeot speed towards its opponent at blinding speeds. Alex was amazed at how fast Pidgeot was moving. But as the Bird pokemon collide with its opponent, Victreebel didn't seem too bothered by the hit. It simply shook its body and stood ready for battle.

"Leaf Blade" Erika pointed at the still airborne Flying type.

Victreebel's leaves glowed bright green as it launched itself at its opponent.

"That thing can jump?" Alex said surprised at the Grass types maneuver.

"Blow it away with Gust" Ashley urgently responded.

Pidgoet immediately spread its wings and began flapping them vigorously, producing a powerful blast of wind that blew Victreebel back towards its trainer. The Grass-type hit the ground hard but managed to remain upright as it slid backwards, stopping just three feet from Erika.

"Now Aerial Ace"

Victreebel gazed up at the Bird pokemon as it sped towards it at fast speed, white streaks coming off its body.

"Sludge Bomb" Erika commanded.

Victreebel opened its mouth and launched a barrage of purple globs of sludge at its airborne opponent. Pidgeot managed to avoid the full front of the attack and connected with its own attack.

"Leaf Storm"

Victreebel's body began to glow light green as leaves seemed to materialize around it. As Pidgeot flew away from its opponent, Victreebel unleashed a powerful cyclone of light green leaves that enveloped the Bird Pokemon. The force from the attack spun the pokemon violently and was spiraling towards one of the massive trees that surrounded the battlefield

"Use Quick Attack to get outta there!" Ashley shouted.

Summoning every ounce of strength it could, Pidgeot spread its wings and forced its way out of the vortex, a white streak of energy streamed off of its wings and tail as it flew high above the battlefield.

"Now, Brave Bird!"

Pidgeot folded its wings inwards and its body became coated in flames as it dove towards its target. Pidgeot spread its wings, the flames that coated its body suddenly turned into a shining blue aura.

"Sludge Bomb!"

Pidgeot connected with its attack before Victreebel could launch its attack. The two pokemon collided as a large explosion enveloped them both. Pidgeot flew out of the smoke and hovered above the center of the battlefield, wincing as blue sparks covered its body.

"What's Brave Bird?" Alex asked

"It's a really powerful Flying-type move" Ben explained, "But it's a risky move"

"Huh, what do you mean?"

"It inflicts recoil damage onto the user… use it too much and it can be dangerous"

"Wow…"

"There are other moves that are similar to Brave Bird… such as Flare Blitz, Volt Tackle, Double Edge, and Wood Hammer"

"Victeebel is unable to battle" the ref announced, "Pidgeot wins"

"Great Job" Ashley smiled as Erika recalled her pokemon to its pokeball.

"Not bad… but that was just the start" Erika smirked as she prepared to call on her second pokemon.

"Tangela, come on out"

Out of the light of the pokeball, Erika's pokemon appeared. It looked like a tangled ball of vines with two red feet and two eyes in the center of the tangled vines that from its body. Alex looked at this creature oddly.

"_Tangela, the Vine Pokemon. Tangela is covered with thick blue vines that obscure its face so only its eyes can be seen. It also has a pair of red boot-like feet. Tangela's vines never stop growing and are easily replaced if lost or damaged. Tangela can ensnare and entangle its foes with its vines. It tangles any moving thing with its vines. Their subtle shaking is ticklish if you get ensnared._"

"Pidgeot, can you keep going?" Ashley asked, her pokemon looked back and nodded.

"Alright, round two… begin" the ref began the fight.

"Tangela, Stun Spore"

A stream of orange particles flew from Tangela's face.

"Pidgeot, blow it away" Ashley commanded.

Pidgeot slammed its wings vigorously, blowing the cloud of paralyzing particles away.

"Now, Quick Attrack"

The Flying-type flew at its opponent at high speeds.

"Tangela, grab it!"

Tangela's vines flew towards the Bird pokemon. Pidgeot dodged the first few but the Vine pokemon's vines snared the Flying-type at the joints of its wings, preventing it from escaping. Ashley was shocked that her pokemon was caught.

"Shockwave!"

Electricity surrounded Tangela's body and traveled up its vines, delivering a powerful shock to the trapped Flying-type.

"Finish it"

Tangela slammed Pidgeot into the battlefield with force. The ref made her call.

"Pidgeot is unable to battle, Tangela wins"

"Whoa! I didn't know that Grass-types could use Electric attacks?" Alex said in shock.

"Thanks Pidgeot, now get some rest" Ashley recalled her pokemon.

"Poor Pidgeot" Alex said as it disappeared into its pokeball.

"Don't worry, she'll be alright" Ashley said as she reached for her second pokeball, "Arcanine, let's go!"

"Fire-type… that's a good choice" Ben said as Arcanine stood ready to fight.

"Round three, begin"

"Tangela, Stun Spore"

"Arcanine, counter with Flamethrower"

Arcanine's fire attack burned Tangela's cloud instantly, the Vine pokemon quickly jumped out of the path of the flames. Ashley and Arcanine smirked.

"Tangela, Power Whip" Erika commanded

The Vine pokemon's vines began to glow pink as they flew towards the large dog pokemon

"Power Whip?" Alex looked to Ben

"It's a powerful Grass-type move" Ben answered

"Any downsides to it?"

"None that comes to mind"

"Arcanine, Extreme Speed!" Ashley commanded

Arcanine immediately charged at an unbelievable speed, dodging Tangela's vines with such ease. Tangela flinched as Arcanine got closer and slammed into it fast and hard

"Was that like Quick Attack?" Alex asked

"Actually yes, Extreme Speed is basically a much stronger version of Quick Attack" Ben answered

"Shockwave"

"Flamethrower!"

Both pokemon launched their attacks simultaneously, sparks and embers flew as they collided and soon afterward, exploded violently

"Extreme Speed"

Arcanine charged, erupting out of the smoke at the opposing Grass-type.

"Stun Spore!"

Tangela let loose another cloud of paralyzing dust into the air, straight into the incoming Fire-type's path.

"Dodge it!"

Arcanine just managed to make a sharp turn away from the Stun Spore.

"Flamethrower!" Ashley shouted

The Fire-type opened his mouth and unleashed a blazing stream of flames, causing serious damage to the Vine pokemon.

"Flare Blitz!"

Arcanine's body suddenly became covered in red and orange flames. A split second later, he flew straight at Tangela. The Grass-type turned into a scorching ball of fire as the Fire-type's attack scored a direct hit.

"Flamethrower, one more time"

Tangela was hit with one final flaming attack before hitting one of the many trees that surrounding the battlefield. Arcanine winced from the recoil effect of his Flare Blitz.

"Tangela is unable to battle"

"Good job" Arcanine looked back to see Ashley smiling at him, "Can you keep going?" the Fire-type nodded and turned back towards the opposing trainer

"Thank you Tangela" Erika smiled as she recalled her pokemon and reached for her third and final pokeball, "Vileplume, come on out"

"_Vileplume, the Flower Pokemon and an evolved form of Gloom. Vileplume scatters toxic spores and releases noxious gases. Its toxic pollen sometimes triggers atrocious allergy attacks. It also has the world's largest petals which it uses to attract prey. The larger its petals, the more pollen it scatters._"

"Round four, begin"

"Vileplume, Sludge Bomb" Erika commanded

"Arcanine, Flamethrower" Ashley countered

Both pokemon launched their attacks simultaneously, exploding as the collided at the very center of the battlefield

"Looks like a draw" Alex was amazed at the power and force behind their attacks

"Use Petal Dance"

Vileplume pointed the large flower on its head towards the opposing Fire-type and unleashed a spiraling twister of pink flower petals.

"Dodge it"

Arcanine jumped out of the path of Vileplume's attack. But as he landed, the Flower pokemon turned his head and chased after the large fire dog

"Watch out!" Ashley shouted

Acranine continued to dodge the Petal Dance, but Vileplume wouldn't give up the chase. Finally, Vileplume's attack ceased and the Grass-type seemed confused or disoriented

"What's wrong with Vileplume?" Alex asked

"Petal Dance confuses the user after it's finished" Ben answered as Vileplume seemed to have difficulty standing straight

"Thunder Fang"

Arcanine ran towards the Flower pokemon, his fangs covered with electricity

"Sleep Powder!" Erika commanded

Despite its confusion, Vileplume released a cloud of light blue particles that flew straight into the Fire-type's sensitive nose. Arcanine instantly felt drowsy and a moment later, tripped and slid across the battlefield stopping just in front of Vileplume, fast asleep. At the same time, the confusion that was afflicting Vileplume a moment ago faded

"Sludge Bomb" Erika smirked

Vileplume fired a barrage of purple sludge at point blank range. The force sent Arcanine sliding across the field, still completely out of it

"Arcanine, you've gotta wake up!"

"Sludge Bomb, once more"

Arcanine took more damage from another barrage of sludge globs. The sleeping pokemon stopped not far from his trainer

"Now, Solarbeam!"

Vileplume pointed its head at its sleeping opponent as sunlight began to gather at the center of its large flower. The more light it absorbed, the brighter it began to glow

"Fire the beam!"

At Erika's command, the Flower pokemon unleashed a massive beam at its still sleeping opponent

"Arcanine, wake up!" Ashley shouted

Vileplume's beam exploded on contact. But as the smoke cleared, Arcanine stood wide awake, looking almost unscathed from the attack

"What?" Erika was shocked

"Yes" Alex cheered

"He made it" Ashley said with relief

"Looks like he woke up just in time" Ben said as the Fire-type awaited his trainer's command

"Alright, Flamethrower" Ashley pointed at the Grass pokemon

"Sludge Bomb"

"Flare Blitz!"

As the poison and fire attacks collided once again, Arcanine erupted from the smoke, his body covered in flames. Vileplume cried out as the flames from Acranine's attack scorched it

"Thunder Fang"

Arcanine's teeth sparked with electricity and clamped down on a still blazing Vileplume. The combination of fire and electricity caused the burning Grass-type to explode. Ashley and Erika watched as Arcanine slid backwards, smoke still surrounded Erika's pokemon. When the smoke finally settled, the ref made her call

"Vileplume is unable to battle, Arcanine wins. The victory goes to the challenger, Ashley"

"Yes, we won" Ashley smiled as she ran over to her clearly exhausted pokemon, "Good boy, thank you" she hugged and gently petted her pokemon

"She did it" Alex stood up, holding Johnny in his arms

"Arcanine really hung in there" Ben remarked, "She's obviously raised him really well"

"Congratulations, here's the proof you won here… the Rainbow Badge" Erika presented Ashley with her prize

"Way to go Ashley" Alex said as he, Ben and Melody walked up

"Thanks you guys and thank you Arcanine" she smiled, "who's my good boy?" Ashley scratched her pokemon and kissed his head before recalling him to his pokeball for some much needed rest

"I guess I'm next" Alex looked to Erika

"Actually, I need some time to prepare" Erika turned her attention towards him, "My pokemon are exhausted and need to get their energy back"

"Alright… when should I come back?"

"I'll send one of my attendants to find you get you when my pokemon and I are ready" the gym leader answered

"We'll be at the pokemon center" Alex said as they prepared to leave, "See you later"

Back at the pokemon center, Ashley handed her pokemon over to Nurse Joy for some much needed recovery. Ben was at the center's battle area helping Alex prepare for his coming battle. The two had been going at it, rotating between their pokemon for the past several hours. Ashley walked outside to check on their progress, picking Johnny up as she sat down on a bench

"Alright Sophia, Flamethrower"

"Golduck, Ice Beam!"

Sophia fired a stream of flames, while Ben's newly evolved Golduck countered with a frigid light blue beam

"Sophia, Energy Ball"

The crest of hair on top of her head glowed green as a ball of green energy formed in her mouth

"Golduck, Shadow Claw"

An aura of black and purple energy surrounded both of Golduck's webbed hands, taking the shape of long, sharp claws. The Water-type charged as its opponent fired her attack. Golduck gazed intensely as Sophia's attack flew closer and closer until finally, just at the last second, Golduck raised his energized claws and sliced straight through the Energy Ball. Both Alex and Sophia were stunned at the feat.

"One more time, Shadow Claw"

"Use Extrasensory"

Golduck charged his webbed hands with shadow energy once again as Sophia's gleaming red eyes began to glow golden. As the Water-type finished and started to close the distance between him and Sophia, the Fire-type fired a rainbow colored beam of light from her eyes, enveloping the Duck pokemon in a cone of psychic energy. As the attack enveloped the Water-type, Golduck slid backwards, struggling to maintain his footing as the shadow energy surrounding his hands dissipated.

"Great job Sophia" Alex smiled as she ran over to him, "Good girl"

Alex knelt down, scratching her behind her ear and the side of her face. Sophia began to lean into his hands

"She's so much more confident now" he thought as the Ninetales licked his cheek

"Alright, time to switch" Ben said

"Alright Melody, you're up" Alex turned around, Melody stepped onto the battlefield as Sophia took her place on the sideline

"Ok Electabuzz, let's go"

Electabuzz took his place on the battlefield, opposite of Melody

"Melody, Psychic"

"Electabuzz, Protect"

The Electric-type crossed his arms in front of him, forming his barrier as Melody's attack sped towards him. Electrabuzz's shield held strong as the Psychic attack collided with it

"Thunder Punch"

Electabuzz clenched his fist as it burst and crackled with electricity

"Magical Leaf"

Melody counter with a flurry of light green leaves. The opposing Electric-type forced his way through the flurry, bringing his fist up, ready to strike.

"Dodge it"

Although she managed to avoid a direct hit from the Thunder Punch as it hit the battlefield, the force caused rocks and sparks of electricity to shoot out from the point of impact, causing damage to the Psychic-type

"Thunderbolt!" both trainers commanded

Electabuzz's antenna sparked violently as Melody flew backwards from the Thunder Punch, her hand sparking with electricity as well. Both pokemon fired as she hit the ground, large sparks flew in every direction as the two electric attacks collided

"Psychic!"

A blast of light blue psychic energy flew at Electabuzz, connecting in the center of his body. The Electric pokemon slid backwards, losing his footing and slamming his back on the battlefield.

"Brick Break!" Ben commanded as his pokemon got to his feet

Electabuzz ran at Melody, his right hand sparked with white energy as he prepared to karate chop his opponent

"Protect!" Alex called

Melody's eyes light up slightly as her shield formed around her. Electabuzz's hand bounced off the Emotion pokemon's barrier

"Psychic!"

As her shield faded, Melody countered with a powerful Psychic blast. Electabuzz took the full force of the attack and flew across the battlefield, landing four feet away from his trainer

"Thunderbolt!"

The Electric pokemon fired another blast of electricity at the Emotion pokemon

"Dodge it"

Melody jumped out of the path of the bolt of electricity. Alex covered his eyes as the blast exploded near his side of the field

"Psychic!"

Melody landed and launched another blast of psychic energy at her opponent

"Dodge it, then Thunder Punch"

Electabuzz evaded the attack and clenched his fist, electricity sparked violently around his fist

"Thunderbolt!" Alex shouted

The Electric pokemon charged the Psychic-type as she fired a bolt of electricity directly in his path. Electabuzz dodged and punched Melody at full force, sending her hurtling towards a tree

"Melody!"

Alex ran into her path and caught her in his arms. As he caught her, he tripped and fell, hitting his back on the tree. Ben, Ashley, and Sophia quickly ran over to them

"Alex!" Melody looked at him, wincing in pain

"Melody, you alright?" Alex opened his eyes and looked at his childhood friend

"I'm alright…" she answered

"I'm glad" he smiled, Melody blushed slightly

"Are you alright?" Ben helped him up

"I'm ok" Alex said as he got to his feet

Electabuzz and Sophia walked up to Melody and spoke to her in their native tongue

"Are you alright?" Sophia asked

"I'm fine" she replied

"Sorry about that last one…" Electabuzz apologized, "I guess I got carried away… I'm sorry" he scratched the back of his head as he spoke

"It's alright" Melody smiled at the Electric pokemon

"You could have really hurt yourself back there Alex" Ashley said as Alex stretched and popped his back

"What can I say?" Alex just looked at her, "She's my best friend…"

"I've never met a trainer like you before…" Ashley looked at him

"I'll take that as a compliment" Alex smiled at her, "Come on Melody, let's go see Nurse Joy" he, Melody, and Sophia walked into the pokemon center

"I've never seen such dedication in a trainer before…" Ashley was amazed at how far he was willing to go for his pokemon

"I've said it before and I will say it again… the trust between him and his pokemon is truly something to behold" Ben walked up next to Ashley

"Even so… I've never met anyone who is so close to their pokemon before"

"I guess that's just the way he operates… he seems like the type of person who when he develops a friendship with someone, it's a very close one" Ashley just smiled in amazement as they saw Alex hand Joy his pokemon to be treated

"I guess he knows just how valuable friendships truly are…"

"Pardon me" a voice said from behind

"Here you are, I'm all finished treating your pokemon" Joy handed Alex back his pokeballs as Melody jumped down

"Thanks Nurse Joy"

"Good luck with your battle"

"Thanks" he smiled

"Hey Alex" Ben called

"Huh?" he and Melody turned to see one of Erika's attendants standing behind Ben and Ashley

"Excuse me; Lady Erika is ready for you"

"Alright, guess it's our turn"

As they headed back towards the gym, Alex tapped Erika's attendant

"Hey can I ask you something?"

"Yes?"

"Pardon me for asking, but why do you call her Lady Erika?" Alex asked, "Is she a princess or something?"

"Yes, Lady Erika is a princess and is a much respected part of this city" she answered him, "Not only is she the leader of the Celadon City gym, she also teaches at the local university, head of the Archery club, and teaches the art of flower arrangement and creating beautiful perfumes"

"Wow…" Alex said in amazement

"She is a truly wonderful person and all of us are happy to serve her" the attendant smiled

"No wonder she's so well respected…" Ben commented

"I just can't believe that she's really a princess…" Alex said, "I've never met a real princess before"

"Yeah and you bumped into her earlier" Ashley smirked

"You did what?" the attendant looked back at him

"It was an accident, I wasn't paying attention and I walked into her" he explained in an embarrassed tone, "I'm sorry" he started to get worried about bumping into a real princess, worried he might get into some serious trouble now

"You're just lucky that Lady Erika didn't get hurt" the attendant glared at him

"Sorry" Alex flinched as she glared at him; she looked like she'd kill him if Erika had really gotten hurt

As they finally returned to the gym, Alex, Ben, Ashley, and Melody were led to the battlefield. Erika and the rest of her maids and attendants were waiting for them.

"Welcome back" Erika greeted them with a smile, "Are you ready?"

"I'm ready when you are" Alex took his place on the battlefield as Ben and Ashley sat on the sidelines

"The battle between Erika, the gym leader, and Alex, the challenger, is about to begin. Both sides will have the use of three pokemon and the battle will be over when all three of one side's pokemon are unable to continue. In addition, only the challenger will be allowed to substitute their pokemon during this battle" the ref announced, "Choose your pokemon"

"Tangela, come on out" Erika threw her pokeball, the ball opened and her pokemon appeared

"Alright Melody, let's go" Alex looked at her, she nodded and took her place on the field

"Are you ready?" both trainers nodded, "Let the battle begin!"

"Melody, Psychic" Alex commanded

"Tangela, Hidden Power"

As Melody charged her attack, Tangela's body began to glow with light as many small white balls of energy began to form all around it. A second later, both fired their respective attacks and collided with evenly matched power

"Tangela, Shockwave"

"Counter with Thnderbolt"

Both combatants fired their electric attacks; Melody's attack began to push back on Tangela's before enveloping it

"Melody, Psychic one more time"

"Tangela, dodge it then use Power Whip!"

Tangela managed to evade her blast and threw two powerful vines at opposing Psychic-type

"Watch out!"

Melody avoided the first attack, but was thrown halfway across the battlefield by a swing from the second vine

"Psychic!"

Melody's eyes began to glow light blue as she landed. A moment later, she fired two beams of psychic energy at the Vine pokemon, Tangela disappeared in a psychic explosion

"Hidden Power!"

Suddenly, a barrage of small white balls burst from the smoke and flew straight at the Emotion pokemon

"Dodge it!"

"Tangela, grab her!"

As Melody dodged the barrage of Hidden Power, two vines wrapped around her midsection

"Shockwave!"

Tangela's electric attack traveled down its vines and headed for the trapped Psychic-type

"Protect!" Alex shouted

Although the vines still gripped her, Melody's barrier appeared around her and succeeded in stopping the electricity from reaching her

"Stun Spore" Erika commanded as the barrier faded

As her barrier faded, Tangela sent a cloud of orange particles that completely enveloped the Emotion pokemon. Sparks formed around her, making it difficult to move

"Alright, use Power Whip"

But nothing happened… both Erika and Alex looked over at Tangela and were surprised to see sparks all around its body, just like Melody. Tangela was paralyzed and unable to move

"Why does Tangela look paralyzed?" Ashley asked

"Looks like Melody's ability is Synchronize" Ben remarked

"Synchronize?" Alex looked back at Ben

"It's an ability that allows her to transfer a status ailment like Burn, Poison, or Paralysis to the opponent" he explained

"Melody use Psychic, Max Power!"

Fighting through the paralysis, the Psychic-type's entire body began glow light blue as her psychic energy built up. Unleashing a massive blast, Tangela was launched clear across the battlefield straight into a large tree, finally freeing Melody from its vines

"Tangela is unable to battle"

"Melody, come here" Alex called to her, she stopped right in front of him, "Good job back there… go ahead and take a break" he knelt down and placed his hand on her head, she smiled at him

"I'm calling her back" he said to the ref, she nodded

"Victreebel, come on out" Erika sent out her second pokemon

"Alright Sophia, let's go" Alex called out his Ninetales

"Round two, begin" the ref announced

"Sophia, Flamethrower"

"Dodge it and power up with Swords Dance"

Victreebel jumped out of the path of fire attack, its leaves glowing purple increasing its power

"Don't let it get away!" Alex pointed at the large Grass-type, "Flamethrower"

Sophia opened her mouth and fired another stream of flames at her opponent

"Victreebel, Sludge Bomb" Erika countered

The Flycatcher pokemon opened its mouth and shot a barrage at the incoming fire attack

"Leaf Blade"

"Use Extrasensory!"

Sophia fired a rainbow colored beam from her eyes as Victreebel prepared to strike with its leaves glowing green. The psychic attack enveloped the Grass-type, the force knocking it off balance and sending it flying back several feet

"Leaf Storm!" Erika commanded

Victreebel cried out as light green leaves floated around it, its eyes glowed as it prepared to unleash its fury

"Sophia, Confuse Ray!"

Sophia's eyes began to glow purple. A moment later, a purple beam shot forth and connected with Victreebel. As the purple beam covered it, the Grass-type's eyes began to glow red as it finished charging its move. But as it prepared to release its move, the effects of the Confuse ray began to kick in. Victreebel struggled to maintain its focus and its balance as it fired its move straight into a tree about five feet to the left of the Ninetales

"Flamethrower lets go" Alex smirked as the attack missed

Sophia immediately fired her attack, engulfing the large Grass-type in flames. It screeched as the fire burned its body

"Sludge Bomb"

Although still affected by the confusion, Victreebel opened its mouth, releasing many globs of sludge in every which way

"Energy Ball"

As some of the sludge flew towards Sophia, she countered with her own attack, dissipating the opponents

"Alright, finish it with Flamethrower"

The Ninetales fired one last stream of scorching flames at Victreebel. The Flycatcher pokemon was finally brought down by this final attack

"Victreebel is unable to battle"

"Great job Sophia" Alex smiled, "Just one more" the Ninetales smiled at her trainer

"Not bad, but I'm not finished just yet" Erika said as she recalled her defeated pokemon and reached for her third and final pokeball

"Alright Vileplume, come on out"

"Think you can keep going Sophia?" Alex asked, she turned and nodded confidently, "Alright, lets wrap this up"

"Round three, begin" the ref started the round

"Sophia, Extrasensory"

"Vileplume, Petal Dance"

Both pokemon launched their attacks simultaneously; Vileplume's Petal Dance flew straight through Sophia's psychic attack. Both combatants took the frontal force of the other's attack.

"Sleep Powder"

As its Petal Dance continued, still enveloping the Fire-type, Vileplume added a stream of light blue particles to the swirling vortex of pink flower petals. Sophia suddenly felt her eyes growing heavy with each passing second until she fell onto her side, fast asleep

"Sludge Bomb"

Vileplume shrugged off its confusion and fired a blast of purple sludge globs at its now sleeping opponent. Every last one of them connected and caused damage to the sleeping Fox pokemon

"Come on Sophia, wake up!" Alex called her name, but she didn't wake up

"Solarbeam"

Vileplume pointed its head at the sleeping Fire-type; light began to gather at the center of its massive flower. The more light it gathered, the brighter the center glowed

"Sophia!" Alex called her once again, this time she woke up and got to her feet quickly, "Use Flamethrower, quick!"

"Fire the beam"

As Sophia fired a stream of flames at the Flower pokemon, it unleashed beam at full force. Vileplume's Solarbeam tore through the Flamethrower and headed straight for its target

"Dodge it!"

The Fox pokemon managed to avoid the full force of the attack, but the shockwaves from the impact hit her hard.

"Petal Dance once more" Erika commanded as she skidded across the battlefield

"Confuse Ray" Alex countered

Vileplume prepared its attack, but was hit by a confusion inducing beam from Sophia. The confused Flower pokemon fired its move at the ceiling as its moved in an almost drunken manner

"Extrasensory"

Vileplume flew backwards onto its back as a cone of rainbow colored psychic energy hit it head on

"Finish it with Flamethrower!" Alex shouted

The Ninetales jumped and let loose a powerful stream of flames down onto the downed Grass-type. Sophia landed and looked to her opponent, its eyes were loopy. A second later, the ref made her call

"Vileplume is unable to battle, Ninetales wins. The victory goes to the challenger, Alex" the ref announced

"Yes!" Alex cheered as Sophia ran over to him, "Thanks Sophia" he petted her as she licked his cheek

"Congratulations" Erika approached the trainer, "Please take this as proof of your victory here, the Rainbow badge"

"Thank you Erika" Alex accepted the badge, "You're an amazing trainer, I really enjoyed battling you" he smiled

"Thank you, you're not so bad yourself" she smiled at him, "Good luck with the rest of the Kanto League"

"Good bye, milady" Alex gave a small bow before he and the rest of their group headed for the pokemon center. Erika giggled at his bow and waved as they left


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: A Rival Appears

Summary: After finally arriving in Saffron City, Alex is anxious for his next badge. But first, he meets up with a strangely familiar person

"Saffron City, finally" Alex said they walked into the city limits

"It's been weeks since we've been in a city" Ben said in a tired voice

"I could go for a hot bath and a good meal" Ashley said as her stomach growled

"I say we head to the Pokemon Center and see about some lunch" Ben suggested

"No argument there" Alex's stomach had no problems with that plan

It had been four weeks since they left Celadon City and all of them were looking forward to sleeping on a real bed and taking a bath. The Pokemon Center is always a welcome sight, especially for the traveling trainer. The services provided by these establishments are invaluable, a place for trainers and pokemon to rest and recover from battles and traveling over each region's vast landscape. All 3 of them took their turns enjoying a hot shower before tending to their pokemon. Ashley enjoyed the feeling of a soft mattress under her after weeks of camping on the hard ground; the boys shared the same feeling on their own beds.

After a nice nap and a good meal, Alex headed for the battlefield to get some training in before attempting the Psychic Saffron Gym and its leader, Sabrina, the Psychic Mistress.

"Charmeleon, use Flamethrower" a voice from the center's battle field commanded

Alex, Ben, and Ashley saw two trainers battling, a young man with a Charmeleon in front of him, what looked like a Ghost pokemon behind and to his left, and a large purple pokemon with a horn on its head on the right. His opponent was a battling with a pokemon that looked like a huge fur ball with legs, arms, and a face with a snout

"Who are those pokemon?" Alex reached for his pokedex

"That one guy has a Charmeleon, a Haunter, and a Nidoking" Ashley said

"And the other is using a Primeape" Ben said, "Quite an assortment of pokemon"

_Charmeleon, the Flame Pokemon and the evolved form of Charmander. It has a barbaric nature. In battle, it whips its fiery tail around and slashes away with sharp claws._

_Nidoking, the Drill Pokemon and the evolved form of Nidorino. One swing of its mighty tail can snap a telephone pole in half as if it were nothing but a matchstick._

_Haunter, the Gas Pokemon and the evolved form of Gastly. It likes to lurk in the dark and tap shoulders with a gaseous hand. Its touch causes endless shuddering._

_Primeape, the Pig Monkey Pokemon and the evolved form of Mankey. It becomes wildly furious if it even senses someone looking at it. It chases anyone that meets its glare._

"Primeape, use Karate Chop!" Primeape's trainer seemed just as hot headed as it was

"Charmeleon, counter with Flamethrower" the trainer seemed to remain calm and level headed

"Awesome moves" Alex said as Charmeleon gained the upper hand

"Charmeleon, Slash now"

Charmeleon finished the battle with a final attack

"Primeape, return!" he seemed angry over this loss, "I'm gonna train harder and I'll get you next time!" he ran off

"Whatever" he did little more than roll his eyes as he walked to his Charmeleon, "Well done Charmeleon, great job"

Primeape's trainer plowed straight through Alex and company. Alex fell to the ground, his badge case flying out of his partially opened backpack

"Hey, watch where you're going!" Alex stood up, a little surprised to see his badge case in the hands of Charmeleon's trainer

He was obviously older than Alex was, probably 4 or 5 years at least. Black hair and brown eyes, fair skin, and he seemed like he had quite a lot of experience as a trainer under his belt. A girl with blackish brown hair and brown eyes walked up to him from the center

"Hey Selena, how's Teddiursa doing?" he asked

"Just ate too much, all Teddiursa needs is some sleep" Selena replied

"Maybe this will teach Teddiursa that too much honey can be a bad thing" he chuckled

"Hey, you look familiar…" Alex looked at this Trainer, "Haven't I seen you on TV?"

"You saw him on TV?" Ben asked

"Yeah… let me think for a minute…" Alex tried to remember; "Now I remember!" it came to him, "I think it was called the Unova League, right?"

"Correct" he crossed his arms

"I remember now, your name is Earl" Alex remembered watching it on TV, "You won at the last Vertress Conference, right?"

"Mhm, he won the league and won the right to challenge Alder, the Unova Champion" Selena added

"Well, that's quite an achievement" Ben said, "Well done"

"Thanks for picking up my badge case" Alex said as Earl opened the case

"So you have four badges, how long has it been since you started your journey?" Earl asked

"I don't know… four or five months, maybe more" Alex scratched his head, he hadn't been keeping track

"And you have four…" Earl closed the badge case, "Hmm, not bad for a rookie"

"Um… can I have my badges back now please?"

"Here, keep better track of those things" Earl tossed them back and recalled his three pokemon, "Tell me, was it luck that you won or did you just fluke out?"

"Why don't I show you!" Alex shouted in an annoyed voice

"Is that a challenge?" Earl said plainly

"You bet it is!"

"This should end quickly" Earl said as they took their places, "This will be a three-on-three battle"

"That's fine by me" Alex reached towards his belt as Ben took place are referee

"Alright, both of you pick your pokemon"

"Go, Galvantula" Earl called out his pokemon, a huge yellow spider-like pokemon appeared

"What is that thing?" Alex reached for his pokedex

"_No data available…_"

"Hmph, haven't updated your pokedex, have you?" Earl seemed annoyed, "Hmph, just like a rookie" crossed his arms, completely un-amused

"Grr, I'll show you!" Alex called out his pokemon, "Go Sophia!" Alex's Ninitales appeared

"A Fire-type, that's a smart move" Selena commented

"What kind of typing is Galvantula anyway?" Ashley asked

"Galvantula has an interesting typing, it's both a Bug-type and an Electric-type" Selena answered

"Then going by type, Alex's Ninetales has the advantage" Ben said

"It's true Bug are weak to Fire, but Galvantula is also an Electric type, might not be as easy as you think…" Selena smirked

"Ok Sophia, Flamethrower!"

"Thunder, go" Earl said with complete calm in his voice

Galvantula and Sophia launched their attacks simultaneously; their power resulted in an immense explosion

"Sophia, Flamethrower one more time!" they tried it again

"Dodge it, then use Toxic" Earl said calmly

Galvantula used its legs to leap out of danger and launched a vile, purple, toxic sludge at Sophia

"Sophia!" Alex shouted as the toxic substance seeped into the fire-type's body, causing serious damage, "Sophia, are you ok?" the fire-type fought through it and stood ready

"Ok, try Confuse Ray"

"Use Bug Buzz"

Sophia's eyes began to glow as Galvantula let out a loud cry, releasing red sound waves from its body at its opponent. The sound waves hit Sophia, causing her a splitting headache, combined with the damage from the earlier Toxic, the Ninetales failed to use Confuse Ray.

"Bug moves might not be effective, but they seemed more interested in stopping that Confuse Ray…" Ben noted

"Earl has quickly taken control of the battle" Selena said as the Ninetales took more damage from the poison

"Finish it with Thunder" Galvantula fired a devastating Electric attack, knocking out the helpless Fire-type

"Ninetales is unable to battle, Galvantula wins" Ben ruled

"Sophia, return…" Alex recalled her

"Galvantula, return" Earl recalled his pokemon, "Come on out, Scrafty"

Earl's new pokemon was even stranger than the last one. This one looked like a lizard standing on two legs with a Mohawk like crest on its head. It also seemed like it had a hood and was holding up a pair of pants…

Alex was about to reach for his pokedex, but he remembered that his pokedex had no data on any pokemon from Unova. There was no point in looking it up, he was gonna have to go with luck and his own instincts.

"What's wrong, don't know what to pick?" Earl asked, Scrafty crossed its arms

"The battle isn't over yet" Alex grabbed another pokeball, "I choose you, Lucas!" his Lucario appeared

"This should be interesting" Selena thought, "Lucario is a Fighting/Steel type, while Scrafty is a Dark/Fighting type… both use Fighting attacks, but both are also weak to Fighting-type attacks. Guess we'll just have to wait and see what moves they call"

"Lucas, Aura Sphere!"

"Block it, then use Dragon Dance"

Scrafty braced itself as the Lucario fired his Aura Sphere. Scrafty took the attack, but there was more force than it had expected

"Well, that's some impressive strength" Earl commented, but he wasn't worried as Scrafty powered up with an odd dance

"What's Dragon Dance?" Ashley asked

"It increases the users Attack and Speed when used" Ben answered

"Use Aura Sphere again!" Alex commanded

"Counter with Drain Punch" Earl ordered calmly

Green energy surrounded its fist as Scrafty forced its way through the Aura Sphere and delivered a powerful punch to the Aura pokemon with power and speed behind it.

"Lucas, you okay?" Alex worried as his Lucario got back to his feet

"Drain Punch not only damages the opponent, it also heals the user" Selena said as both sides prepared to continue the battle

"Drain Punch, once more" Earl said as Scrafty moved to attack once again

"Aura Sphere!" Lucario countered, but Scrafty was undeterred, "Quick, use Bone Rush to block!"

The Aura pokemon barely managed to stop the Unova pokemon's punch with his staff-like bone, the two sides struggled to overpower the other. Lucas finally leapt away from Scrafty as the Bone disappeared

"Scrafty, Dragon Dance again" Earl commanded

"Quick Lucas, Aura Sphere again!" Alex countered

Scrafty again powered up as Lucas again scored a direct hit with Aura Sphere

"He just keeps using the same 2 moves…" Ashley said

"Drain Punch is the only move Scrafty has that's effective against a Fighting/Steel pokemon like Lucario" Selena replied

"Drain Punch, now!"

"Counter with Force Palm!"

Scrafty used its newly powered up speed to its advantage, it quickly closed the distance and threw a powerful punch. Lucas dodged it by a fraction of an inch and slammed his paw into Scrafty's chest. A powerful blast of energy erupted onto Scrafty and hurtled it away

"Now, Aura Sphere!"

Lucas fired yet another Aura Sphere at a dazed Scrafty, scoring even more damage. Earl seemed rather annoyed as Scrafty got to its feet

"Wow, they're actually holding out pretty well against Earl and Scrafty" Selena was actually surprised

"Scrafty, Drain Punch!" but nothing happened

Yellow sparks surrounded Scrafty, preventing it from moving. Earl just gave an annoyed sighed and closed his eyes.

"Talk about Lucky" Earl said

"Looks like that Force Palm paralyzed Scrafty" Ben said

"Let's finish it Lucas, Aura Sphere now!"

The Lucario charged another Aura Sphere between his paws and threw it as hard has he could at his opponent. The sphere exploded violently as it slammed into Scrafty

"Scrafty is unable to battle, Lucario wins" Ben declared the winner of the round

"Good job Lucas" Alex said, relieved they beat Earl's pokemon

"Thank you Scrafty, return" Earl recalled his pokemon

"Wow, they actually beat Scrafty" Selena was officially surprised

"Well, I'll give credit where credit is due…" Earl said as he reached for another pokeball, "Your Lucario is fairly impressive, but you got lucky with that Force Palm paralyzing my Scrafty" the pokeball expanded to its normal size, "But I think it's time I finish this… Go, Hydreigon!"

Earl threw his pokeball into the air, out of it appeared a dark dragon like pokemon with 3 heads and 6 thin wings. The two smaller heads seemed to act like arms. Its body has mainly black and blue, with fuchsia stripes along its abdomen and an almost flower like collar around the main head

"What is that thing…" Alex stared at this new pokemon, the dragon-like pokemon growled and let out a loud roar at the young trainer

"Oh boy" Selena shook her head, "He's done for now that Earl's brought out Hydreigon"

"Is it really that bad?" Ashley asked her

"Oh yeah…" Selena nodded, "Hydreigon is one of Earl's most powerful. It won him the final round of the Vertress Conference in Unova"

"You ok to keep going Lucas?" Alex asked, his Lucario nodded, "I just wish I knew what types that thing was…" he thought to himself

"Hydreigon, let's be done with this" Earl said to his pokemon, the creature turned and nodded at its trainer

"Ok Lucas, let's start with Aura Sphere" Alex ordered, his Lucario obeyed and fired at the three headed dragon

"Counter with Dragon Pulse" Earl commanded, Hydreigon fired a turquoise sphere from its center head, the two attacks exploded violently as they hit each other

"Whoa, that's some power" Alex was hit with the shockwaves from that explosion

"Flamethrower, Now" Earl ordered

An intense stream of flames pierced the shroud of smoke, aimed straight for the Aura pokemon

"Dodge it quick!" Alex tried to react in time, but it was too late

The fire plowed straight into the Lucario, the heat and intensity of the flames inflicting massive damage. Lucas fell to the ground, defeated.

"Lucario is unable to battle, Hydreigon wins" Ben said as Alex recalled his defeated pokemon

"What amazing power…" Ashley was shocked it beat Lucario so quickly

"Lucario maybe a Fighting-type, but it also has Steel-type characteristics" Selena commented, "It may lose its weaknesses associated with Fighting-types, but it retains the weaknesses common to Steel-types… and Fire is super effective against Steel"

"Wait, if that thing keeps attacking with specially based attacks, then his Milotic's Mirror Coat might be an effective counter" Ashley suggested, but Selena just shook her head

"Nope, it wouldn't work" Selena said plainly, "Mirror Coat would work on a normal opponent, but not on Hydreigon"

"Why not?" Ashley asked

"Mirror Coat is a good and effective counter to specially based attacks, but it's still a Psychic based attack" Selena answered, "Hydreigon may be a Dragon-type, but it's also a Dark-type pokemon… and Psychic attacks have absolutely no effect on Dark-types, not to mention Dragon-types are able to resist Fire, Water, Grass, and Electric attacks"

"Geez, Hydreigon sounds like quite a powerhouse" Ashley replied

"Dragon-types are perhaps the strongest and most difficult type of pokemon for a trainer to raise and train… not to mention they take so long to evolve…" Selena crossed her arms, "But once you've mastered their power, they're practically unstoppable in battle"

"What do I do now?" Alex thought to himself, "Mimi's Mirror Coat won't work, and I can't just rely on Ice Beam to win it for me against that thing… I can't send Melody against that thing, and I definitely can't use Johnny against Hydreigon…" Alex couldn't think of a way out of this, none of his pokemon were powerful enough to beat that thing. Suddenly a light erupted from his belt

"Gible!" the small Dragon-type appeared

"Zack?"Alex look to see is own Dragon-type standing ready to battle, "What are you doing out of your pokeball?" the two dragons glared at each other

"What's that little thing?" Selena pulled out her pokedex, hers was a much slimmer model than Alex's or Ashley's and was more of a vertical rectangular shape

"_Gible, the Land Shark Pokemon. It attacks using its huge mouth. While its attacks are powerful, it hurts itself out of clumsiness, too._" Like Ashley's pokedex, Selena's spoke with a male voice, unlike Alex's, which spoke with a female voice

"I didn't realize he had a Dragon of his own" Selena seemed slightly surprised

"Gible and their evolved forms are actually quite beginner friendly for newer trainers" Ben commented, "They're strong, but easier for newer trainers to raise than most other Dragon-types"

"I wonder if his Gible wants to battle with Earl's Hydreigon?" Ashley wondered as the two kept glaring at each other

"Zack, are you sure you wanna fight that thing?" Alex was worried his pokemon wouldn't stand a ghost of a chance against something as powerful as that Hydreigon

"Gib Gible!" the small Land Shark pokemon didn't break eye contact with Hydreigon

"That Gible has guts, I'll give it that, but this shouldn't take more than one move" Earl just crossed his arms, "Dragon Pulse, go"

Hydreigon fired the moment Earl finishes his command, but the Gible responded with a Dragon Rage before Alex could give it a command. The two attacks exploded violently mid air

"Guess that means you really wanna do this Zack…" Alex accepted his pokemon's decision

"What a stubborn little Dragon-type" Ashley said

"Looks like Gible wants to help Alex no matter what" Ben said to himself

"Alright Zack, use Dragon Rage again" Alex commanded

"Dodge, then Dragon Pulse" Earl countered

Hydreigon flew past the fiery attack and countered with its own powerful attack

"Use Dig and get out of there!"

The Dragon Pulse exploded on impact, but the clearing smoke revealed nothing but a hole in the ground

"Use Dragon Rage again"

The Gible jumped out of ground and fired at Hydreigon's back, a direct hit… though Hydreigon didn't seem all that bothered by the hit.

"Tri Attack" Earl commanded

Hydreigon opened all 3 mouths, an orb formed in each. It unleashed a beam of Fire, Ice and Lightning from each orb. The Land Shark pokemon was hurtled back into the ground by all 3 beams

"Zack, Get Up" Alex shouted, "Use Sandstorm!"

Gible got to its feet, undeterred, and unleashed a powerful Sandstorm that enveloped the entire area. Hydreigon slowly began to descend as the sand pulverized it

"Use Tackle and then get on its back!"

"Dragon Pulse, once more!"

Gible tackled the larger Dragon-type, forcing it to lose more altitude. But Hydreigon couldn't hit the small Gible with its Dragon Pulse attack

"Of course, Sand Veil" Earl said

"Sand Veil?" Ashley wondered

"It's an ability that increases a pokemon's evasion during a sandstorm" Ben explained, "That's why his Gible can avoid Hydreigon's attacks better now" Zack jumped on Hydreigon's back

"Now, Use Dragon Rage!" Zack fired at the back of Hydreigon's central head

"Whoa, Hydreigon felt that one" Ashley said as Hydreigon cried out in pain

"Use Dragon Rage again!"

"Shake it off now!" Earl commanded

Hydreigon thrashed around as Zack grabbed onto one of Hydreigon's wings and scored another direct hit. Hydreigon flew up higher and out of the sandstorm

"Dragon Rage again!" Alex commanded, but a sharp turn finally threw the Gible off its back

But, undeterred, Zack launched its move, causing more damage to its opponent as it fell to the ground

"Dragon Pulse Now!" Earl's Hydreigon fired at the still airborne Gible

"Zack!" Alex shouted as his pokemon took major damage, "Are you ok?!"

The dragon-type struggled to his feet, determined not to be beaten. A bright light engulfed it

"Is that…?" Alex stared at his pokemon

"It looks like its evolving" Ashley said

Alex pointed his pokedex as the light faded and revealed a new, larger dragon pokemon.

"_Gabite, the Cave Pokemon and the evolved form of Gible. Gabite is a fierce and territorial pokemon that will engage any opponent at close range with high speed and deadly attacks with their claws and fangs. Gabite dig up precious gems and hoard in their dens_"

"Zack evolved into Gabite…" Alex closed his pokedex

"Well, I'll congratulate you on your Gible evolving into Gabite" Earl crossed his arms, "But you're still nowhere near strong enough to beat us… Hydreigon, use Dragon Pulse"

"Zack, Dodge it quick"

Alex's newly evolved Gabite swiftly dodged the attack, then charged, its claws glowing with turquoise energy. Before Alex could give another command, Zack leapt at Hydreigon and slashed it with its claws

"Whoa, they felt that one" Ashley said

"I think Zack just learned Dragon Claw" Alex was surprised at the power behind that move, "Alright, use Dragon Claw again!" the Gabite charged again

"End this Now! Dragon Pulse!" Earl commanded

Hydreigon's arms bit onto the airborne Gabite's arm, preventing it from attacking. It pulled it closer and unleashed a Dragon Pulse at close range

"Zack, No!" Alex's pokemon fell from the cloud of smoke and hit the ground hard

"Gabite is unable to battle, Hydreigon wins, and Earl wins the match" Ben announced as Alex ran to his defeated Gabite

"Zack, are you ok!?" Alex knelt down and picked up his pokemon, Zack opened his eyes, "You battled really hard Zack, thank you…"

"I'll admit, not too shabby for a rookie" Earl said plainly, "I guess I would expect this much from a rookie with only 4 badges" Alex felt his frustration growing more and more, "Even so, you're still too weak to beat me"

"Next time, I'm not losing to you!" Alex shouted in frustration

"Let's see if you can just get the rest of your badges before the Indigo League gets started this year" Earl said plainly as he crossed his arms, not impressed in the least, "Well done Hydreigon, excellent as always" Earl petted his pokemon for a job well done

"Oh man…" Ashley looked on as Alex recalled Zack to his pokeball

"Next time, think really hard before you even consider challenging me again" Earl recalled Hydreigon, "I don't really care too much for crushing inexperienced rookies like you"


End file.
